QUESTION
My Dad with Alheimers has "signed" (deed of gift) his house over to my sister who is his POA. Is this legal?
Asked on Jan 31st, 2012 on Elder Law - North Carolina
More details to this question:
The sister, who is POA, is forbidding us, my daughter and I, his ONLY family, from visiting. She lives out of state and has hired a convicted drug dealer to care for him for 12 hours a day but he is left alone for the remainder. She has posted no trespassing signs naming us as the ones not allowed to visit and has given the care giver instructions to call the police and have us arrested if we come to visit. I have been to DSS, 2 lawyers, the police, the magistrate etc. but cannot seem to get any help. I am now being told that it is legal for a man with Alzheimers to sign over his house to my sister who has also recently changed his will to remove me and my daughter. I only want to visit my Dad in his final days but because it is now her house she can say I am not allowed to visit?
1 ANSWER
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This is a terrible, but unfortunately common, situation. People often abuse powers of attorney given them by elderly family members or friends. To answer you initial question, if your father lacks the mental capacity to make this gift of his house, the transfer is null and void. However, a mere diagnosis of alzheimer's is not enough - as you know, there are significantly varying degrees of that condition which worsens over time.
I will say that you should not wait to contact an attorney. Typically, once you learn about one of these inappropriate transfers, it is indicative that others have already occurred. Our office has seen entire estates get wiped out, and then too often the clients are left kicking themselves for not acting more quickly at the first signs.
Most law firms, including our office, offer free initial consultations for this type of work. You should contact someone knowledgeable about these issues as soon as possible before planning your next steps. Good luck going forward. -Jay Mills
Answered on Feb 10th, 2012 at 5:01 PM