Download Mississippi Durable Power of Attorney Form [PDF]

The Mississippi durable power of attorney (durable POA) is a document one party, called the principal, issues to authorize another party, called the agent, or the attorney-in-fact, to represent them before governmental, financial, medical, and other institutions and third parties.

The term durable means that the document will stay valid and effective even if the principal becomes legally incapacitated.

The principal should use the durable power of attorney in every situation when they are not able to take some action or make some decision personally. This can be due to old age, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, or simply because they are located far from the place where a certain action needs to be taken.

Durable Power of Attorney Laws & Requirements in Mississippi

Laws & Requirements

Relevant laws: Title 87, Chapter 3 - Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act
Signing requirements: Although there are no statutory requirements regarding the signature of the Mississippi durable power of attorney, the parties are strongly advised to sign it before the notary public to prevent any future disputes regarding the authenticity of the document.
Statutory form: The state laws don’t provide the statutory form for the Mississippi durable power of attorney.
“Durable” as defined by the state law: Mississippi Code, § 87-3-105, stipulates that a durable power of attorney is a document that includes the words "This power of attorney shall not be affected by subsequent disability or incapacity of the principal, or lapse of time," or "This power of attorney shall become effective upon the disability or incapacity of the principal."

How to Fill out a Durable Power of Attorney in Mississippi

#1. Designate an Agent

First, you must provide the full names and mailing addresses of the principal and the agent.

The agent should be an adult with the legal capacity to act. Moreover, it should be a trustworthy person, especially if they are authorized to make financial or healthcare decisions. And finally, they should be located near the place where a certain action needs to be taken.

Here, you can also name the successor agent. This is the person who will represent the principal in case the primary agent becomes incapacitated.

#2. Grant Authority

After you have determined the agent, you should define their scope of authority.

The Mississippi durable power of attorney form provides three main ways to define the scope of authority:

Scope of Authority

General authority. With this option, you will enable the agent to take all the necessary action and interact with all the third parties on your behalf. You can also limit the general authority by specifying which actions the agent is not allowed to take.
Partial authority. Here, you can select the actions you want to include in your agent’s scope of authority from the list of actions provided in the power of attorney form.
Special authority. The special authority enables you to define the scope of authority in your own words. In this way, you can include the authorities that are not provided in the durable power of attorney form.

#3. Ensure the Form is Durable

In Mississippi, the power of attorney is not considered durable by default, meaning that you will have to use specific language when drafting your document to indicate its durability.

#4. Sign the Form

Although not required by state law, you should sign the Mississippi durable power of attorney before the notary public.

#5. Notarize the Form

The notary public will acknowledge the principal’s signature and the overall authenticity of the document. This will prevent any future disputes in that regard.

#6. Store Your Durable Power of Attorney Form

After finalizing the durable power of attorney, you should keep it in your possession and store it in a safe place.

You can give one copy to the agent, so they can prove their capacity to every third party they are interacting with on your behalf.

How to Revoke a Durable Power of Attorney in Mississippi

The best way to revoke the Mississippi durable power of attorney is to draft the revocation letter.

This letter should include the name of the agent and the date of issuance of the power of attorney you want to revoke. Additionally, you can include any other information that will individualize the power of attorney you want to revoke.

To make the revocation effective, you should send one copy of the revocation letter to the agent and every third party the agent is interacting with on your behalf so all relevant parties are aware of the revocation.