Vermont Statutes Title 14 Sec. 4031
Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 14 Sec. 4031
- Agent: means a person granted authority to act for a principal under a power of attorney, whether denominated an agent, attorney-in-fact, or otherwise. See
- Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
- Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
- Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
- Electronic: means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. See
- following: when used by way of reference to a section of the law shall mean the next preceding or following section. See
- Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
- Inter vivos: Transfer of property from one living person to another living person.
- Life estate: A property interest limited in duration to the life of the individual holding the interest (life tenant).
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Person: means an individual; corporation; business trust; estate; trust; partnership; limited liability company; association; joint venture; public corporation; government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; or any other legal or commercial entity. See
- Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
- Power of attorney: means a writing or other record that grants authority to an agent to act in the place of the principal, whether or not the term power of attorney is used. See
- Principal: means an individual who grants authority to an agent in a power of attorney. See
- Property: means anything that may be the subject of ownership, whether real or personal, or legal or equitable, or any interest or right therein. See
- Right of survivorship: The ownership rights that result in the acquisition of title to property by reason of having survived other co-owners.
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U. See
§ 4031. Authority that requires specific grant; grant of general authority
(a) An agent under a power of attorney may do the following on behalf of the principal or with the principal’s property only if the power of attorney expressly grants the agent the authority and exercise of the authority is not otherwise prohibited by another agreement or instrument to which the authority or property is subject:
(1) create, amend, revoke, or terminate an inter vivos trust;
(2) make a gift;
(3) create or change rights of survivorship;
(4) create or change a beneficiary designation;
(5) delegate authority granted under the power of attorney;
(6) waive the principal’s right to be a beneficiary of a joint and survivor annuity, including a survivor benefit under a retirement plan;
(7) authorize another person to exercise the authority granted under the power of attorney;
(8) exercise authority over the content of an electronic communication of the principal in accordance with chapter 125 of this title (Vermont Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act);
(9) disclaim property, including a power of appointment;
(10) exercise a written waiver of spousal rights under section 323 of this title;
(11) exercise authority with respect to intellectual property, including copyrights, contracts for payment of royalties, and trademarks; or
(12) convey, or revoke or revise a grantee designation, by enhanced life estate deed pursuant to chapter 6 of Title 27 or under common law.
(b) Notwithstanding a grant of authority to do an act described in subsection (a) of this section, unless the power of attorney otherwise provides, an agent that is not an ancestor, spouse, or descendant of the principal may not exercise authority under a power of attorney to create in the agent, or in an individual to whom the agent owes a legal obligation of support, an interest in the principal’s property, whether by gift, right of survivorship, beneficiary designation, disclaimer, or otherwise.
(c) Subject to subsections (a), (b), (d), and (e) of this section, if a power of attorney grants to an agent authority to do all acts that a principal could do, the agent has the general authority described in sections 4034-4046 of this title.
(d) Unless the power of attorney otherwise provides, a grant of authority to make a gift is subject to section 4047 of this title.
(e) Subject to subsections (a), (b), and (d) of this section, if the subjects over which authority is granted in a power of attorney are similar or overlap, the broadest authority controls.
(f) Authority granted in a power of attorney is exercisable with respect to property that the principal has when the power of attorney is executed or acquires later, whether or not the property is located in this State and whether or not the authority is exercised or the power of attorney is executed in this State.
(g) An act performed by an agent pursuant to a power of attorney has the same effect and inures to the benefit of and binds the principal and the principal’s successors in interest as if the principal had performed the act. (Added 2023, No. 60, § 1, eff. July 1, 2023.)