Please DeLay my death

March 31, 2005 10:55 AM

I would like to name to DeLay as my "Enduring Power of Attorney" in the event that I somehow reach the same state as Terri Schiavo. Would this hold any ground in court? Could he legally refuse the EPA?
posted by sharksandwich to Law & Government (7 answers total)

powers of attorney that i've used have required the witnessed signature of both parties. it would be very odd if you could just dump such a responsibilty on someone without their agreement.
posted by andrew cooke at 10:58 AM on March 31, 2005

Even if you could grant someone such powers without their consent, which you can't, I cannot imagine any court requiring that person to actually do anything with said power.

Incidentally, in the U.S., it's called "Durable Power of Attorney."
posted by cerebus19 at 11:02 AM on March 31, 2005

In Wisconsin (where sharksandwich appears to live), there is a standard form used to designate someone as your "health care agent." It's produced by a state agency, under state statute. That form requires a signature of the person you designate. So, unless you can persuade Tom DeLay to sign, your designation will not be valid.

(Note that this is legally distinct from power of attorney, which you sometimes can bestow upon people without them signing anything).
posted by profwhat at 11:47 AM on March 31, 2005

what circumstances allow you to bestow power of attorney on someone without their consent?
posted by andrew cooke at 11:49 AM on March 31, 2005

You can grant the powers without their consent in at least some states. See, e.g. Texas Probate Code Chapter XII. That doesn't mean that the person you chose as your attorney-in-fact has any responsibility to act if they did not agree to do so.
posted by grouse at 12:03 PM on March 31, 2005

thanks!
posted by andrew cooke at 12:05 PM on March 31, 2005

Seems like a risky gamble to me. DeLay euthanised his father, but tried to save Shiavo. Who knows what he'd choose for you? The man is obviously a waffle on life-and-death issues.
posted by five fresh fish at 4:00 PM on March 31, 2005