Remote Witnessing of Powers of Attorney

 

Recent amendments to the Power of Attorney Act and Power of Attorney Regulation permit remote witnessing of signatures in British Columbia. These amendments came into affect on January 1, 2023.

The donor (referred to as the “adult” in the legislation) may sign a power of attorney in the electronic presence of a witness who is a British Columbia lawyer or notary public. Similarly, the attorney may also sign in the electronic presence of the witness, provided that the witness is a British Columbia lawyer or notary public. Accordingly, it is no longer necessary for the donor or attorney to sign in front of a lawyer or notary public in person, but may be witnessed using audiovisual technology.

The Regulation includes the following definitions in 2.1(1):

“communicate” means communicate using audiovisual technology, including assistive technology for individuals who are hearing impaired or visually impaired, that enables individuals to communicate with each other by hearing and seeing each other;

“electronic presence” or “electronically present” means the circumstances in which 2 or more individuals in different locations communicate simultaneously to an extent that is similar to communication that would occur if all the individuals were physically present in the same location.

Both the donor (or attorney) and the lawyer or notary public acting as witness sign and date complete and identical copies of the power of attorney in counterparts. Although the copies must be substantively identical, a non-substantive formatting difference will not affect the validity of the power of attorney.

I continue to prefer witnessing and signing documents in person, but there are circumstances, such as isolation that occurred during Covid-19, as well as when the donor or attorney is in a remote location or outside of British Columbia, when the ability to witness remotely is welcome.