Can I give my husband a power of attorney to act on behalf without hiring an Attorney?

Question

I am being sued by a company and have been summoned to appear in the clerks office. The summons is to appear in NY city and I live in Birmingham, al. I need a power of attorney so my husband can answer these bogus charges, so do I have to go thru an attorney or is there a way to get the power of attorney on my own? The reason I want to do it myself is because of the expense of getting an attorney to do anything for you.

Answer 1

POA is for transactions; you husband can't testify to the facts in a lawsuit. A POA is worthless in that case. YOu can hire an atty to reperesent you; or you can appear.  

Answer 2

A power of attorney does not give someone the authority to represent you in court. If you are being sued you have two choices - represent yourself, or hire a lawyer. Your husband cannot represent you under any circumstances.

Even if you hire a lawyer, you're still going to have to go to court anyway, since your testimony will be required.

Richard

Answer 3

Yes you can draw up your own POA (I would suggest an Attorney), have it Notarized, signed, datd and recorded!

Answer 4

This sounds like a "summons and complaint", which is a form used to advise you of a pending proceeding, not an order to physically go there (which would be in the form of a subpoena).

A NY attorney will help you answer these questions under the rules of the court; in some cases your attorney can file "an appearance" and plead the case on your behalf, and you would only have to appear in person if it were to go to trial.  The vast majority of lawsuits do not go to trial.

Failure to file an answer, counter-claim, or appearance in the allotted time could result in the court entering a default judgment against you.