We’ve made drafting and notarizing your CPOA as easy and convenient as possible. Spend less time creating a document from scratch with our lawyer-vetted, fillable CPOA  template. 

What is a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property in Ontario?

An Ontario CPOA is a legal document that authorizes another person to make financial decisions on your behalf. Sometimes, continuing POAs are called “durable” POAs — these terms refer to the same document and are interchangeable. 

A Continuing Power of Attorney for Property gives someone (or multiple people) the right to manage your money and property. In Canada, the person you appoint is called an “attorney” — but they don’t need to be a lawyer. The granting party (giving the authority to manage their finances) is called a “grantor”.

Essentially, a CPOA affirms that an attorney has the legal right to take action and make decisions on behalf of the grantor. It illustrates the scope and validity of authorization, to maintain a formal record of the arrangement. 

The Purpose of a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property

If you don’t have a Power of Attorney for Property, other people cannot legally manage your finances (not even your spouse). Family members would have to retain a lawyer or undergo a lengthy court process to be appointed as guardians.

If nobody steps in, the government can appoint the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee to handle your finances for you. Having a CPOA in place ensures that your financial affairs are carried out according to your wishes.

How Much Power Does an Attorney Have?

Unless you limit their authority, your attorney can do almost anything you can do with your finances and property. They can sign cheques, buy or sell your property, do your banking, make purchases, and more. This gives them enormous power, so choose carefully. 

To learn more about an attorney’s restrictions and what you can do to ensure they don’t abuse their power, see our CPOA guide.

Continuing vs Non-Continuing POA for Property

You can choose when a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property takes effect, giving you control over its activation. The document will remain valid if you become mentally incapacitated (mentally incapable). 

If you’re not mentally capable of making decisions, you’re considered incapacitated. Being incapacitated means you cannot appreciate the foreseeable consequences of a decision or understand information relevant to making a decision.

A Non-Continuing Power of Attorney for Property (also known as a General POA) works differently. You can choose when it takes effect, but if you become incapacitated, a non-continuing POA ends and is no longer valid.

A Non-Continuing POA allows your attorney to manage your finances only when you’re not incapacitated. For instance, you may want to appoint an attorney temporarily while you are on vacation or sick. 

If you need to draft a Non-Continuing Power of Attorney for Property, use our free template!

How to Draft a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property 

Drafting a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property is easy with our free, fillable CPOA template. We’ve outlined the essential elements and information you’ll want to include in your CPOA below.

Elements Your CPOA Must Contain

To be valid, your Continuing Power of Attorney for Property must have the following elements:

• Be called a Continuing Power of Attorney or state that it allows your attorney to continue acting for you if you become incapacitated;

• Name one or multiple attorneys for your property;

• Be signed and dated by you (with wet ink); and

• Be signed by two witnesses (with wet ink), who watch you sign the document.

Details to Include in Your CPOA

Include the below information in your Continuing Power of Attorney for Property:

• Granting party’s details: Full name, address, and contact details.

• Authorized party’s details: Full name, address, and contact details.

• Authorization scope: A clear description of the financial rights, permissions, or powers granted to the attorney. 

• Substitute attorney’s details: Full name, address and contact details of the substitute attorney in case the original one cannot fulfill their duties.

• Limitations: Note any restrictions you’d like to place on the attorney’s permissions. 

• Date of effectiveness: Add the date you’d like the attorney to step in. This doesn’t prevent you from handling matters if you’re capable. 

• Duration: If applicable, add a time frame during which the authorization is valid 

• Signatures: The granting party, attorney, and witnesses must sign and date the CPOA.

• Notary stamp: Having your CPOA notarized can make things move faster, giving institutions greater confidence in its authenticity.

• Compensation: Attorneys are paid at a rate set out by the law unless you indicate otherwise. The current rate is 3% of funds received and paid, and 60% of 1% of an asset’s average annual value.