2023 New York Laws › GOB - General Obligations › Article 5 - Creation, Definition and Enforcement of Contractual Obligations › Title 15 - Statutory Short Form and Other Powers of Attorney for Financial and Estate Planning › 5-1501 - Applications and Definitions.

§  5-1501.  Application  and definitions. 1. This title shall apply to
all powers of attorney except powers  of  attorney  excluded  from  this
title by section 5-1501C of this title.
2.  As used in this title the following terms shall have the following
meanings:
(a)  "Agent"  means   a   person   granted   authority   to   act   as
attorney-in-fact  for  the  principal  under  a  power  of attorney, and
includes the original agent and any co-agent or successor agent.  Unless
the  context  indicates  otherwise,  an "agent" designated in a power of
attorney shall mean "attorney-in-fact" for the purposes of  this  title.
An  agent  acting under a power of attorney has a fiduciary relationship
with the principal.
(b) "Benefits from governmental programs or civil or military service"
means any benefit, program or assistance provided  under  a  statute  or
governmental   regulation,   including  social  security,  medicare  and
medicaid.
(c) "Capacity" means ability to comprehend the nature and consequences
of the act of executing and granting, revoking, amending or modifying  a
power  of  attorney,  any  provision  in  a  power  of  attorney, or the
authority of any person to act as agent under a power of attorney.
(d) "Compensation" means reasonable compensation authorized to be paid
to the agent from assets of the principal for services actually rendered
by the agent pursuant to the authority granted in a power of attorney.
(e) "Financial institution" means a financial entity,  including,  but
not  limited  to:  a  bank,  trust company, national bank, savings bank,
federal mutual savings  bank,  savings  and  loan  association,  federal
savings   and   loan   association,  federal  mutual  savings  and  loan
association, credit union, federal credit union,  branch  of  a  foreign
banking  corporation, public pension fund, retirement system, securities
broker, securities dealer, securities firm, and insurance company.
(f) "Incapacitated" means to be without capacity.
(g) "Internal Revenue Code" means the United States  Internal  Revenue
Code  of  1986, as amended. Such references, however, shall be deemed to
constitute references to any corresponding provisions of any  subsequent
federal tax code.
(h)  "Monitor"  means  a person appointed in the power of attorney who
has the authority to request, receive, and seek to compel the  agent  to
provide  a  record  of  all  receipts,  disbursements,  and transactions
entered into by the agent on behalf of the principal.
(i) "Person" means  an  individual,  whether  acting  for  himself  or
herself,  or as a fiduciary or as an official of any legal, governmental
or commercial entity (including, but not limited  to,  any  such  entity
identified  in  this  subdivision), corporation, business trust, estate,
trust,  partnership,  limited  liability  company,  association,   joint
venture,   government,   governmental  subdivision,  government  agency,
government entity, government instrumentality,  public  corporation,  or
any other legal or commercial entity.
(j)  "Power  of  attorney"  means  a  written  document,  other than a
document referred to in section  5-1501C  of  this  title,  by  which  a
principal  with capacity designates an agent to act on his or her behalf
and includes both a  statutory  short  form  power  of  attorney  and  a
non-statutory power of attorney.
(k)  "Principal"  means  an individual who is eighteen years of age or
older, acting for himself or herself and not as a  fiduciary  or  as  an
official of any legal, governmental or commercial entity, who executes a
power of attorney.
(l)  "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium
or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in
perceivable form.
(m)  "Sign"  means  to  place  any  memorandum, mark or sign, written,
printed, stamped, photographed, engraved or otherwise upon an instrument
or writing, or to use an electronic signature as that term is defined in
subdivision three of section three hundred two of the  state  technology
law,  with  the  intent to execute the instrument, writing or electronic
record. In accordance with the requirements  of  section  three  hundred
seven  of  the  state  technology  law, a power of attorney or any other
instrument executed by the principal or agent that is  recordable  under
the  real  property  law  shall  not  be  executed  with  an  electronic
signature.
(n) "Statutory short form power of attorney" means a power of attorney
that  meets  the  requirements  of  paragraphs  (a),  (b)  and  (c)   of
subdivision one of section 5-1501B of this title, and that substantially
conforms  to the wording of the form set forth in section 5-1513 of this
title; provided however, that any section indicated as  "Optional"  that
is  not  used  may  be  omitted and replaced by the words "Intentionally
Omitted". A given power of attorney substantially conforms to  the  form
required  pursuant  to section 5-1513 of this title notwithstanding that
the form contains (i) an insignificant  mistake  in  wording,  spelling,
punctuation  or  formatting,  or the use of bold or italic type; or (ii)
uses language that is essentially the same as, but is not identical  to,
the  statutory  form,  including  utilizing  language  from  a  previous
statute. The determination of whether there  is  substantial  conformity
with the form set forth in section 5-1513 of this title shall not depend
on  the  presence  or absence of a particular clause. Failing to include
clauses that are not relevant to a given power of attorney shall not  in
itself  cause  such  power  of attorney to be found to not substantially
conform with the requirements of such form. The  use  of  the  form  set
forth  in section 5-1513 of this title is lawful and when used, it shall
be construed as a statutory short form power of  attorney.  A  statutory
short  form power of attorney may be used to grant authority provided in
sections 5-1502A through 5-1502N of this title. A "statutory short  form
power of attorney" may contain modifications or additions as provided in
section 5-1503 of this title.
(o)  "Non-statutory  power of attorney" means a power of attorney that
is not a statutory short form power of attorney.
(p) "Third party" means a financial institution or person other than a
principal or an agent.