N.Y. General Obligations Law § 5-1502d: Construction--banking transactions

§ 5-1502D. Construction--banking transactions. In a statutory short

form power of attorney, the language conferring general authority with

respect to "banking transactions," must be construed to mean that the

principal authorizes the agent:

1. To continue, to modify, to terminate and to make deposits to and

withdrawals from any deposit account, including any joint account with

the agent or totten trust for the benefit of the agent, or other banking

arrangement made by or on behalf of the principal prior to the creation

of the agency, provided, however, that:

(a) with respect to joint accounts existing at the creation of the

agency, the authority granted hereby shall not include the power to

change the title of the account by the addition of a new joint tenant or

the deletion of an existing joint tenant, unless the authority to make

such changes is expressly stated otherwise in the "Modifications"

section of a statutory short form power of attorney or in a

non-statutory power of attorney signed and dated by the principal with

the signature of the principal duly acknowledged in the manner

prescribed for the acknowledgement of a conveyance of real property, and

which is executed pursuant to the requirements of section 5-1501B of

this title, and

(b) with respect to totten trust accounts existing at the creation of

the agency, the authority granted hereby shall not include the power to

add, delete, or otherwise change the designation of beneficiaries in

effect for any such accounts, unless the authority to make such

additions, deletions or changes is expressly stated otherwise in the

"Modifications" section of a statutory short form power of attorney or

in a non-statutory power of attorney signed and dated by the principal

with the signature of the principal duly acknowledged in the manner

prescribed for the acknowledgment of a conveyance of real property, and

which is executed pursuant to the requirements of section 5-1501B of

this title.

2. To open in the name of the principal or on behalf of the principal

a deposit account of any type with any banker or in any banking

institution selected by the agent, to make deposits to and withdrawals

from any such deposit account, to hire such safe deposit box or vault

space and to make such other contracts for the procuring of other

services made available by any such banker or banking institution as the

agent shall think to be desirable;

3. To make, to sign and to deliver checks or drafts for any purpose,

to withdraw by check, order or otherwise any funds or property of the

principal deposited with, or left in the custody of, any banker or

banking institution, wherever located, either before or after the

creation of the agency;

4. To prepare from time to time financial statements concerning the

assets and liabilities or income and expenses of the principal, and to

deliver statements so prepared to any banker, banking institution or

other person, whom the agent believes to be reasonably entitled thereto;

5. To receive statements, vouchers, notices or other documents from

any banker or banking institution and to act with respect thereto;

6. To have free access at any time or times to any safe deposit box or

vault to which the principal might have access, if personally present;

7. To borrow money by bank overdraft, or by promissory note of the

principal given for such period and at such interest rate as the agent

shall select, to give such security out of the assets of the principal

as the agent shall think to be desirable or necessary for any such

borrowing, to pay, to renew or to extend the time of payment of any note

so given or given by or on behalf of the principal, and to procure for

the principal a loan from any banker or banking institution by any other

procedure made available by such banker or institution;

8. To make, to assign, to indorse, to discount, to guarantee, and to

negotiate, for any and all purposes, all promissory notes, bills of

exchange, checks, drafts or other negotiable or non-negotiable paper of

the principal, or payable to the principal or to his order, to receive

the cash or other proceeds of any such transactions, to accept any bill

of exchange or draft drawn by any person upon the principal, and to pay

it when due;

9. To receive for the principal and to deal in and to deal with any

trust receipt, warehouse receipt or other negotiable or non-negotiable

instrument, in which the principal has or claims to have an interest;

10. To apply for and to receive letters of credit or travelers checks

from any banker or banking institution selected by the agent, giving

such indemnity or other agreements in connection therewith as the agent

shall think to be desirable or necessary;

11. To consent to an extension in the time of payment with respect to

any commercial paper or any banking transaction in which the principal

has an interest or by which the principal is, or might be, affected in

any way;

12. To pay, to compromise or to contest taxes or assessments and to

apply for refunds in connection therewith;

13. To demand, to receive, to obtain by action, proceeding, or

otherwise any money or other thing of value to which the principal is,

or may become, or may claim to be entitled as the proceeds of any

banking transaction conducted by the principal himself, or by the agent

in the execution of any of the powers described in this section, or

partly by the principal and partly by the agent so acting, to conserve,

to invest, to disburse or to utilize anything so received for purposes

enumerated in this section, and to reimburse the agent for any

expenditures properly made by him in the execution of the powers

conferred upon him by the statutory short form power of attorney;

14. To execute, to acknowledge, to seal and to deliver any instrument

of any kind, in the name of the principal or otherwise, which the agent

may think useful for the accomplishment of any of the purposes

enumerated in this section;

15. To prosecute, to defend, to submit to alternative dispute

resolution, to settle, and to propose or to accept a compromise with

respect to, any claim existing in favor of, or against, the principal

based on or involving any banking transaction or to intervene in any

action or proceeding relating thereto;

16. To hire, to discharge, and to compensate any attorney, accountant,

expert witness or other assistant or assistants when the agent shall

think such action to be desirable for the proper execution by him of any

of the powers described in this section, and for the keeping of needed

records thereof; and

17. In general, and in addition to all the specific acts in this

section enumerated, to do any other act or acts, which the principal can

do through an agent, in connection with any banking transaction which

does or might in any way affect the financial or other interests of the

principal.

18. If a power of attorney requires that two or more agents act

together as co-agents, one or more agents may delegate to the co-agent

the authority to conduct banking transactions if the principal initialed

subject (o) in the grant of authority provisions of paragraph (f) of the

statutory short form set forth in section 15-1513 of this title.

All powers described in this section 5-1502D of the general

obligations law shall be exercisable equally with respect to any banking

transaction engaged in by the principal at the giving of the power of

attorney or thereafter engaged in, and whether conducted in the state of

New York or elsewhere.