How to Start Making a Power of Attorney in Quebec
Making a protection mandate in Quebec: the notarized or witnessed forms, homologation by the court, and the Curateur public's register and oversight.
How to Start Making a Power of Attorney in Manitoba
Making an enduring power of attorney in Manitoba: the one-witness rule from a closed professional list, and optional filing with the Public Guardian.
Applies in: Manitoba
The short answer
In Manitoba, an enduring power of attorney covers financial affairs only, and it is signed by the donor before one witness — but that witness must come from a closed professional list in the Act, not from family or friends. The governing law is The Powers of Attorney Act, S.M. 1996, c. 62.
This guide is process only. It walks Manitoba's own execution and witness rules, as the Act and the Public Guardian and Trustee guidebook state them. It gives no legal advice, and it does not advise you on who should be attorney, what powers to include, or whether your situation needs a lawyer. Capacity is stated only as the process gate the Act sets; this guide never assesses whether a person meets it. This guide does not re-summarize the national power-of-attorney guide: every rule below is Manitoba's own.
What the document is
An enduring power of attorney in Manitoba is a power of attorney for financial affairs only, not personal decisions. It must be in writing, signed by the donor — or the donor acknowledges their signature — in the presence of a witness, signed by the witness in the presence of the donor, and must provide that it continues despite the donor's mental incompetence. That is section 10(1) of the Act. It is void if the donor was mentally incapable of understanding its nature and effect at execution, under section 10(3).
The witness: one, from a closed list
Manitoba needs one witness only, but the witness must be one of a closed list in section 11(1):
- a person registered or qualified to solemnize marriages under The Marriage Act;
- a superior-court judge;
- a justice of the peace, magistrate or provincial judge;
- a duly qualified medical practitioner;
- a notary public for the province;
- a lawyer entitled to practise in the province;
- a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police; or
- a member of a municipal police force exercising peace-officer powers.
A lay adult friend or relative is not a valid witness. The attorney appointed under the document, and the attorney's spouse, cannot witness it either, under section 11(2).
If the donor cannot sign, another individual who is not the attorney or the attorney's spouse may sign on the donor's behalf in the donor's presence and at their direction. The donor must then acknowledge the signature before a qualified witness, who signs in the donor's presence. That is section 10(2).
The guidebook says the witness should sign an affidavit of execution before a person entitled to take oaths in Manitoba, such as a commissioner for oaths, a lawyer, or a notary public, attached as evidence of proper execution. That is guidebook practice advice, not a statutory validity condition in the opened sections.
Who can be attorney
The attorney must be an adult, mentally competent, and not an undischarged bankrupt, under section 16 of the Act. No attorney-signature requirement appears in the validity sections of the Act, and the guidebook's sample enduring power of attorney is signed by the donor and the witness only.
No standard form
There is no required or standard form of enduring power of attorney in Manitoba. The guidebook states this plainly: forms are available at stationery stores, in kits, or can be made up by the donor. A template written for another province's statute will carry the wrong execution rules with it, and execution is where these documents most often fail.
Filing with the Public Guardian and Trustee
Filing is optional. Section 12 states that a donor or attorney may file a copy of the enduring power of attorney with the Public Trustee. The guidebook's chapter on the registry states that the donor may register it by filing a copy with the Public Guardian and Trustee's office, where it is kept in a safe place and a record is kept. That is useful if a doctor or hospital is considering a committee application. The Public Guardian and Trustee is also a possible applicant to court on springing powers, and is the fallback nearest relative where no qualifying relative exists.
Starting later: the springing power
Section 6(1) allows a power to come into force on a future date or contingency. Where the contingency is mental incompetence and no declarant is named, two duly qualified medical practitioners may declare it, under section 6(4).
What the opened pages do not state
No fee is stated for filing or registering with the Public Guardian and Trustee, and no statement is made about whether the Public Guardian and Trustee charges, or how long a filed copy is kept. No requirement is stated to notify the Public Guardian and Trustee when the attorney first acts. No land-titles registration requirement for real-estate use is stated on the opened pages, although the guidebook's sample form mentions a Homesteads Act consent form.
Related guides:
- How to Start Making a Power of Attorney in Canada — the national power-of-attorney guide, which covers Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta and states none of Manitoba's rules.
- How to Apply for Probate in Manitoba — Manitoba's probate process, which is where an estate is administered after death.
- How to Make a Will in Canada — the national wills guide, which routes Manitoba's will rules.
- How to Start Making a Power of Attorney in Saskatchewan — Saskatchewan's two-route witnessing system, for comparison with Manitoba's one-witness list.
- How to Start Making a Power of Attorney in New Brunswick — New Brunswick's lawyer-presence rule for property powers, for comparison.
- How to Order a Death Certificate in Canada — the death certificate the executor needs as proof of death.
When the attorney's authority ends
Section 13 of the Act lists the events that terminate an attorney's authority under an enduring power of attorney. The authority terminates if a substitute decision maker is appointed for the donor under subsection 88(1) of The Vulnerable Persons Living with a Mental Disability Act and the appointment specifies that the substitute decision maker's powers relate to the donor's estate, or if the custody, management and administration of the donor's estate is taken over by the Public Trustee or another committee by court order under The Mental Health Act. It also terminates if the donor becomes bankrupt, unless the enduring power of attorney provides otherwise, if the attorney becomes bankrupt or mentally incompetent or dies, if the donor dies, if the attorney renounces the appointment and gives notice of the renunciation to the donor, or if the court terminates the power of attorney.
Section 14 adds a pause rather than an end. The operation of an enduring power of attorney is suspended while an emergency substitute decision maker is appointed for the donor under The Vulnerable Persons Living with a Mental Disability Act and the appointment covers the donor's estate, and it remains suspended until the term of that appointment expires.
Making an enduring power of attorney in Manitoba, in five steps
- Choose an attorney for financial affairs onlyA Manitoba enduring power of attorney covers financial affairs, not personal decisions, and the attorney must be an adult, mentally competent, and not an undischarged bankrupt
- Put it in writing and state that it enduresThe document must be in writing, signed by the donor, and must provide that it continues despite the donor's mental incompetence
- Sign before one witness from the closed listThe witness must be a marriage commissioner, judge, justice of the peace, doctor, notary public, lawyer, RCMP member, or municipal police officer
- Have the witness sign an affidavit of executionThe guidebook says the witness should sign an affidavit of execution before a person entitled to take oaths in Manitoba
- Consider filing a copy with the Public Guardian and TrusteeFiling is optional; the Public Guardian and Trustee keeps the copy in a safe place and keeps a record of it
Questions people ask
What does a Manitoba enduring power of attorney cover?
Financial affairs only, not personal decisions. The Public Guardian and Trustee guidebook states this in its first chapter. The document must be in writing, signed by the donor, or the donor must acknowledge their signature, in the presence of a witness, signed by the witness in the presence of the donor, and must provide that it continues despite the donor's mental incompetence. It is void if the donor was mentally incapable of understanding its nature and effect at execution.
How many witnesses does a Manitoba enduring power of attorney need?
One, but that witness must come from a closed list in section 11(1) of The Powers of Attorney Act: a person registered or qualified to solemnize marriages under The Marriage Act, a superior-court judge, a justice of the peace, magistrate or provincial judge, a duly qualified medical practitioner, a notary public for the province, a lawyer entitled to practise in the province, a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, or a member of a municipal police force exercising peace-officer powers. A lay adult friend or relative is not a valid witness.
Who cannot witness a Manitoba enduring power of attorney?
The attorney appointed under the document, and the attorney's spouse, cannot witness it. That is section 11(2) of the Act, and the guidebook repeats it. If the donor cannot sign, another individual who is not the attorney or the attorney's spouse may sign on the donor's behalf in the donor's presence and at their direction, and the donor must acknowledge the signature before a qualified witness.
Is there a standard form for a Manitoba enduring power of attorney?
No. The guidebook states there is no required or standard form of enduring power of attorney. Forms are available at stationery stores, in kits, or can be made up by the donor. The guidebook's sample enduring power of attorney is signed by the donor and the witness only, and no attorney-signature requirement appears in the validity sections of the Act.
Do I have to file a Manitoba enduring power of attorney anywhere?
No. Filing is optional. Section 12 of the Act states that a donor or attorney may file a copy of the enduring power of attorney with the Public Trustee. The guidebook's chapter on the registry states the donor may register it by filing a copy with the Public Guardian and Trustee's office, where it is kept in a safe place and a record is kept. That is useful if a doctor or hospital is considering a committee application.
Can a Manitoba enduring power of attorney start later, instead of right away?
Yes. Section 6(1) of the Act allows a power to come into force on a future date or contingency. Where the contingency is mental incompetence and no declarant is named, two duly qualified medical practitioners may declare it. The Public Guardian and Trustee is a possible applicant to court on springing powers, and is the fallback nearest relative where no qualifying relative exists.
Sources
- Manitoba Laws, The Powers of Attorney Act, S.M. 1996, c. 62 — section 6 on springing powers, section 10 on validity and when the document is void, section 11 on the closed witness list and who may not witness, section 12 on optional filing, and section 16 on attorney eligibility.
- Public Guardian and Trustee of Manitoba, Enduring Power of Attorney: A Guidebook for Donors and Attorneys (October 2014) — financial affairs only, no standard form, the affidavit of execution advice, the registry chapter on optional filing, and the sample form signed by donor and witness only.