How To Contact Relevant Professionals > Can you assign someone for your all transactions? Power of Attorney
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Can you assign someone for your all transactions? Power of Attorney
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Delegation of authority
There are several steps to be followed in buying a property. That's why it is suggested that you appoint someone or an agent to deal with all necessary transactions by means of a legal document called "Power of Attorney" for buying property. This should be done in the presence of a Notary-Public.
A Principal (the person who delegates his authority) can give an Agent broad legal authority, or very limited authority. The Power of Attorney is frequently used to help in the event of a Principal's illness or disability or in legal transactions where the principal cannot be present to sign necessary legal documents.
Suggested duration for a Power of Attorney
Under what conditions and how long a Power of Attorney shall be in force and end should be clearly defined.
What can be delegated?
A Power of Attorney can be used to make an Agent
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Buy, sell or rent out your property,
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Manage your property,
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Conduct your banking transactions,
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Invest or make use of your money on behalf you,
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Make legal claims and conduct litigation or
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Carry out tax matters.
The conditions such as the duration of validity, actions that the agent can take and cannot take etc. should be stated clearly in those documents.
Who should be appointed?
The candidate agent should be researched well. If he/she is a solicitor, it might be useful to cross check whether he/she is a member of the local Lawyers' Barr Association. Or, if you find someone from other professions, you can ask for CV and a professional reference letter.
Please note that without a trustworthy Agent, a Power of Attorney becomes a dangerous legal instrument.
You may appoint multiple Agents. If you appoint two or more Agents, you must decide whether they must act together in making decisions involving your affairs, or whether each can act separately. Allowing your Agents to act separately may ensure that an Agent is always available to act for you. But it may also result in confusion and disagreements if the Agents do not communicate with each other.
Agents’ responsibilities
The Agent appointed by means of a Power of Attorney is your representative. As long as you have the legal capacity to make decisions, you can direct your Agent to behave the way you wish.
The Agent is obliged to act for the sake of your interests and is supposed to avoid any "self-dealing".
Money should be kept in a separate bank account for the benefit of the Principal. Agents must also keep accurate financial records of their activities, and provide complete and periodic accountings for all money and property coming into your possession.
Abuse of a power of attorney or frauds
A Power of Attorney can be abused, and a dishonest Agent may use a Power of Attorney to transfer your assets to himself. That is why, it is very important to appoint an Agent who is completely trustworthy and to require the Agent to provide you with complete and periodic reports.
If your agent is a professional accredited by an occupational association, you should complain about him/her against that association in case of an abuse.
Please also note that you can apply to public attorneys in local justice courts (‘Adliye Sarayi’ in Turkish.) and complain about any abuse or fraud if you are able to document the case.
Monitoring the actions of an Agent
Monitoring the actions of your agent is your own responsibility. It is therefore very important that your Agent keeps accurate records of all transactions on behalf of you.
Abolishment of Power of Attorney
You may revoke the Power of Attorney at any time, in the same way in which it was issued. In other words you should contact the Notary Public in Turkey or Turkish Consulate General in London to revoke the Power of Attorney. In that case, you should send a written notice to your Agent and say that you are revoking the Power of Attorney. Do not forget to request the return of all copies of your Power of Attorney. You should also notify your bank or other financial institutions where your Agent is likely to use the Power of Attorney that it is no longer valid.
Can you have a Power of Attorney prepared in UK?
You don't have to go to Turkey to prepare a Power of Attorney. You can have it prepared in UK. In that case, please make sure that it is legalised so that it can be 'an acceptable/valid document' in Turkey.
How to legalise your documents prepared in UK?
Legalisation simply means confirming that a signature, seal or stamp appearing on a document is genuine. The signatures or seals of British public officials such as solicitors, notaries public, registrars on certain documents from the United Kingdom have to be confirmed before those documents can be accepted in Turkey.
On the other hand, many types of documents can be apostilled by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (www.fco.gov.uk/legalisation) and are exempt from certification by the Consulate General.
For further information on ‘legalisation’, please visit the web page of the Turkish Consulate General in London.