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New York · Through 2026-09-11

N.Y. General Obligations Law § 5-1511: Termination or revocation of power of attorney; notice

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Where this section sits in the code
  1. General Obligations Law
  2. Article 5. Creation, Definition and Enforcement of Contractual Obligations
  3. Title 15. Statutory Short Form and Other Powers of Attorney For Financial and Estate Planning

§ 5-1511. Termination or revocation of power of attorney; notice. 1. A

power of attorney terminates when:

(a) the principal dies;

(b) the principal becomes incapacitated, if the power of attorney is

not durable;

(c) the principal revokes the power of attorney;

(d) the principal revokes the agent's authority and there is no

co-agent or successor agent, or no co-agent or successor agent who is

willing or able to serve;

(e) the agent dies, becomes incapacitated or resigns and there is no

co-agent or successor agent or no co-agent or successor agent who is

willing or able to serve;

(f) the authority of the agent terminates and there is no co-agent or

successor agent or no co-agent or successor agent who is willing or able

to serve;

(g) the purpose of the power of attorney is accomplished; or

(h) a court order revokes the power of attorney as provided in section

5-1510 of this title or in section 81.29 of the mental hygiene law.

2. An agent's authority terminates when:

(a) the principal revokes the agent's authority;

(b) the agent dies, becomes incapacitated or resigns;

(c) the agent's marriage to the principal is terminated by divorce or

annulment, as defined in subparagraph two of paragraph (f) of section

5-1.4 of the estates, powers and trusts law, unless the power of

attorney expressly provides otherwise. If the authority of an agent is

revoked solely by this subdivision, it shall be revived by the

principal's remarriage to the former spouse; or

(d) the power of attorney terminates.

3. A principal may revoke a power of attorney:

(a) in accordance with the terms of the power of attorney; or

(b) by delivering a revocation of the power of attorney to the agent

in person or by sending a signed and dated revocation by mail, courier,

electronic transmission or facsimile to the agent's last known address.

The agent must comply with the principal's revocation notwithstanding

the actual or perceived incapacity of the principal unless the principal

is subject to a guardianship under article eighty-one of the mental

hygiene law.

4. Where a power of attorney has been recorded pursuant to section two

hundred ninety-four of the real property law, the principal shall also

record the revocation in the office in which the power of attorney is

recorded pursuant to section three hundred twenty-six of the real

property law, provided the revocation complies with section three

hundred seven of the state technology law.

5. (a) Termination of an agent's authority or of the power of attorney

is not effective as to any third party who has not received actual

notice of the termination and acts in good faith under the power of

attorney. Any action so taken, unless otherwise invalid or

unenforceable, shall bind the principal and the principal's successors

in interest. A financial institution is deemed to have actual notice

after it has had a reasonable opportunity to act on a written notice of

the revocation or termination following receipt of the same at its

office where an account is located.

(b) Termination of an agent's authority or of the power of attorney is

not effective as to the agent until the agent has received a revocation

as required by subdivision three of this section. An agent is deemed to

have received a revocation when it has been delivered to the agent in

person, or within a reasonable time after it has been sent by mail,

courier, electronic transmission or facsimile in accordance with

subdivision three of this section.

6. The execution of a power of attorney does not revoke any power of

attorney previously executed by the principal.

Collected 2026-09-14T19:32:45Z. Source file · JSON

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