In April, my husband and I agreed to live apart because he was seeing other women and didn't want any responsibilities. Less than 1 month later, he suffered a massive stroke. He is parazyled on his left side and is unable to speak though he understands what is being said to him and responds by squeezing your hand or nodding his head. I had moved to Florida and after his stroke I found I needed a power of attorney to try to take of my day to day needs. I used legal zoom and got a durable power of attorney. I had been working jointly with my step daughter in seeing about his care and how best to go forward. However, she and my father in law have decided that they need complete control over everything. The home I shared with him for over 15 years was purchased by him and his ex-wife prior to her death in 1995. He refinanced the house in 2000 and my name was not added though we were married since I didn't have good enough credit. We also jointly have my car and a motorcycle plus he is my beneficiary on my 401k and life insurance policy. I have refused to give them this power of attorney. My husband and I had discussed prior to his stroke, that he would sell the house and pay off my car, repay my 401k loan(which I took out in March at his request to tide us over until he got a job)and pay his IRS debt and take care of whatever other debts he could clear. I agreed to that with him since it would benefit me in the long run and him also if he decided he wanted to be back together with me. He made his wishes very clear to his daughter. However, now that he can't talk, she is trying to force me to sign a power of attorney and refuses to acknowledge that I have any rights as his legal spouse at all. We didn't get a legal separation as he was undecided as to what course he actually wanted to follow. Do I have any rights under Georgia law to a portion of the home I shared and cared for over the last 15 years and can she force me to sign a power of attorney over to her?

First you can not give them power of attorney over him, he can give them power of attorney over hisself if he wants to and is mentally able to do so.

You are still married, and have rights to go back to GA and be a wife to him if you wish. A house he owned before you were married is his, not yours, you can if your power of attorney is valid, would allow you to sell the home.

Next since you are not able or even legally can sign over power of attorney to someone else, no she can not force you. She can go to court to get guardianship over him, if he is not able to give his permission to give her power of attorney. If the doctors deem him mentally sound, he can sign those rights to her hisself.

You can give up your POA but not give that right to another person.


Now is the time for some hard choices, you either need to go and take care of him, or move him to where you are at to care for him, and act as POA taking care of his business, or you need to give the POA up and go on with a divorce and end this.

So Chuck, what you are saying is that he can give power of attorney to anyone he chooses and that will give them the right to access my bank accounts if his name is on them? Also, on the house, I helped pay the payments on it AND did most of the work on the house by myself since he was a truck driver and gone all the time, so I get nothing at all, though he wanted me to have it? I know this sounds cold hearted but without him to help with the payments on my car, I am going to have to surrender it. I will need a decent vehicle to drive so I can work so that is why I was even considering any of the proceeds from the house. So basically this means as his spouse, I am actually nothing. Is this what you are saying?

No you can sue your husband for broken promise under domestic relations; he agree to help pay and now he refuses which is causing you financial hardship & possible lost of shelter; also guardianship of a disable spouse also will cause more stress because his family (respondents will dispute) is money hungry and don't care about his wife or the fact she is helping.. so go for the guardianship is not going to be cheap legal fees, use your power of atty now to exercise business affairs its in good faith of your marriage; all wives should lobby congress for our rights to superproceed in cases like these.