I have been a caregiver for my parents and 3 siblings for almost 35 years. I started at the age of 18. Dad passed and left the will to my mum. My mother has been in a nursing home for a few months now because she is not capable of signing. I had to get a medical report from the doctors to sign power of attorney. I didn’t want to sign for myself so I told my only brother that we'd both sign. Well of course he didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity. A while went past and I kept asking my brother that he and I must sign the power of attorney just in case mum passed and there will be no power of attorney. He kept delaying it and of course I had my suspicions. It turned out that he had signed for the power of attorney for himself and didn’t include me in it. Until this day I’m not sure if he took his wife to sign as well, he's never been caring for any of them, his wife never visited the house or the nursing home.
Is what brother has done illegal or legal? And is it fraud? How would I able to prove that my mother has always said that she wants me and my brother to be a power of attorney not only one of us? She has dementia and can’t rember what she says or how to sign.
Maybe brother was misinformed or lawyer overstepped his bounds but it was illegal what he did. If this was something the NH was involved in I would question how they have the right to do so. It maybe just temporary to get paperwork signed for Mom not a power over all her finances and future Medical decisions. If so, from this point someone needs guardianship.
You talk about medical report "to sign POA" - this is not correct. You obtain the medical report (which you did) "to invoke the POA" (make it valid so that you and/or brother can make medical and financial, residency decisions for mom".
I suggest you talk to brother and tell him you would like to see the POA. If he refuses, advise him that it may not be legal because mom didn't have mental capacity to understand and sign even if she were coerced by her son to do so.
If you have a letter from her doctor that she didn't have mental capacity to make decsions and this letter pre-dates brother's POA -- then that makes brother's POA invalid.
If the attorney and/or notary of record on the POA did not see or talk to mom -- then that makes it invalid and their "notary" privaledge could be revoked legally.
Good luck.
Usually the facility wher
I hope things work out for you.