Most people think of a will as the centerpiece of estate planning, but a will only takes effect after death. If you become incapable of managing your own affairs while still alive — due to illness, injury, or age — a will does nothing for you. That's where a Power of Attorney and a Representation Agreement come in, and in our experience, many clients are surprised to learn these are two separate documents covering two separate categories of decisions.
What a Power of Attorney Covers
A Power of Attorney (POA) appoints someone — your "attorney" — to manage your financial and legal affairs. This can include paying bills, managing bank accounts, buying or selling property, and handling investments. In British Columbia, POAs are governed by the Power of Attorney Act.
You can make an enduring POA, which continues to be valid even if you later become mentally incapable, or a non-enduring POA, which ends the moment you lose capacity. For incapacity planning purposes, an enduring POA is almost always what people need.
What a Representation Agreement Covers
A Representation Agreement (RA) is different — it deals with health care and personal care decisions, not finances. This is the document that authorizes someone to consent to or refuse medical treatment on your behalf, decide where you live, and make decisions about your personal care if you're unable to communicate those wishes yourself. In BC, these are governed by the Representation Agreement Act.
There are two types: a section 7 agreement, which covers routine health and personal care decisions and has a lower capacity threshold to sign, and a section 9 agreement, which can cover more significant decisions, including refusing life-supporting care, but requires a higher level of capacity at the time of signing.
Why the Distinction Matters
Without an RA, decisions about your medical care and living arrangements default to a legal hierarchy of "temporary substitute decision makers" set out in BC legislation — typically a spouse, then children, then parents, then siblings. This may work out fine, but it removes your ability to choose specifically who makes those decisions, and in blended families or where relationships are complicated, this can create real conflict at the worst possible time.
Do You Need Both?
In our experience, the vast majority of clients need both documents, not just one. A POA without an RA leaves your health and personal care decisions to the default legal hierarchy. An RA without a POA leaves nobody with legal authority to manage your bank accounts, pay your mortgage, or handle your investments if you become incapable.
Together, they cover the full picture: your finances and your health and personal care, both directed by someone you've specifically chosen rather than whoever the law assigns by default.
Choosing the Right Person
The person you appoint as your attorney under a POA does not have to be the same person as your representative under an RA — some clients prefer to split these responsibilities between two trusted people based on their strengths. What matters most is choosing someone who understands your wishes and is willing and able to act on them.
Putting These Documents in Place
Both documents must meet specific signing and witnessing requirements to be valid in BC, and getting the details wrong can mean the document is unenforceable exactly when your family needs it most. Reviewing your existing documents — or putting new ones in place if you don't have any — is one of the most practical steps you can take to protect yourself and the people who would otherwise be left making difficult decisions without clear direction.