Legislation

Search OpenLegislation Statutes

This entry was published on 2021-06-18
The selection dates indicate all change milestones for the entire volume, not just the location being viewed. Specifying a milestone date will retrieve the most recent version of the location before that date.
SECTION 5-1502D
Construction--banking transactions
General Obligations (GOB) CHAPTER 24-A, ARTICLE 5, TITLE 15
§ 5-1502D. Construction--banking transactions. In a statutory short
form power of attorney, the language conferring general authority with
respect to "banking transactions," must be construed to mean that the
principal authorizes the agent:

1. To continue, to modify, to terminate and to make deposits to and
withdrawals from any deposit account, including any joint account with
the agent or totten trust for the benefit of the agent, or other banking
arrangement made by or on behalf of the principal prior to the creation
of the agency, provided, however, that:

(a) with respect to joint accounts existing at the creation of the
agency, the authority granted hereby shall not include the power to
change the title of the account by the addition of a new joint tenant or
the deletion of an existing joint tenant, unless the authority to make
such changes is expressly stated otherwise in the "Modifications"
section of a statutory short form power of attorney or in a
non-statutory power of attorney signed and dated by the principal with
the signature of the principal duly acknowledged in the manner
prescribed for the acknowledgement of a conveyance of real property, and
which is executed pursuant to the requirements of section 5-1501B of
this title, and

(b) with respect to totten trust accounts existing at the creation of
the agency, the authority granted hereby shall not include the power to
add, delete, or otherwise change the designation of beneficiaries in
effect for any such accounts, unless the authority to make such
additions, deletions or changes is expressly stated otherwise in the
"Modifications" section of a statutory short form power of attorney or
in a non-statutory power of attorney signed and dated by the principal
with the signature of the principal duly acknowledged in the manner
prescribed for the acknowledgment of a conveyance of real property, and
which is executed pursuant to the requirements of section 5-1501B of
this title.

2. To open in the name of the principal or on behalf of the principal
a deposit account of any type with any banker or in any banking
institution selected by the agent, to make deposits to and withdrawals
from any such deposit account, to hire such safe deposit box or vault
space and to make such other contracts for the procuring of other
services made available by any such banker or banking institution as the
agent shall think to be desirable;

3. To make, to sign and to deliver checks or drafts for any purpose,
to withdraw by check, order or otherwise any funds or property of the
principal deposited with, or left in the custody of, any banker or
banking institution, wherever located, either before or after the
creation of the agency;

4. To prepare from time to time financial statements concerning the
assets and liabilities or income and expenses of the principal, and to
deliver statements so prepared to any banker, banking institution or
other person, whom the agent believes to be reasonably entitled thereto;

5. To receive statements, vouchers, notices or other documents from
any banker or banking institution and to act with respect thereto;

6. To have free access at any time or times to any safe deposit box or
vault to which the principal might have access, if personally present;

7. To borrow money by bank overdraft, or by promissory note of the
principal given for such period and at such interest rate as the agent
shall select, to give such security out of the assets of the principal
as the agent shall think to be desirable or necessary for any such
borrowing, to pay, to renew or to extend the time of payment of any note
so given or given by or on behalf of the principal, and to procure for
the principal a loan from any banker or banking institution by any other
procedure made available by such banker or institution;

8. To make, to assign, to indorse, to discount, to guarantee, and to
negotiate, for any and all purposes, all promissory notes, bills of
exchange, checks, drafts or other negotiable or non-negotiable paper of
the principal, or payable to the principal or to his order, to receive
the cash or other proceeds of any such transactions, to accept any bill
of exchange or draft drawn by any person upon the principal, and to pay
it when due;

9. To receive for the principal and to deal in and to deal with any
trust receipt, warehouse receipt or other negotiable or non-negotiable
instrument, in which the principal has or claims to have an interest;

10. To apply for and to receive letters of credit or travelers checks
from any banker or banking institution selected by the agent, giving
such indemnity or other agreements in connection therewith as the agent
shall think to be desirable or necessary;

11. To consent to an extension in the time of payment with respect to
any commercial paper or any banking transaction in which the principal
has an interest or by which the principal is, or might be, affected in
any way;

12. To pay, to compromise or to contest taxes or assessments and to
apply for refunds in connection therewith;

13. To demand, to receive, to obtain by action, proceeding, or
otherwise any money or other thing of value to which the principal is,
or may become, or may claim to be entitled as the proceeds of any
banking transaction conducted by the principal himself, or by the agent
in the execution of any of the powers described in this section, or
partly by the principal and partly by the agent so acting, to conserve,
to invest, to disburse or to utilize anything so received for purposes
enumerated in this section, and to reimburse the agent for any
expenditures properly made by him in the execution of the powers
conferred upon him by the statutory short form power of attorney;

14. To execute, to acknowledge, to seal and to deliver any instrument
of any kind, in the name of the principal or otherwise, which the agent
may think useful for the accomplishment of any of the purposes
enumerated in this section;

15. To prosecute, to defend, to submit to alternative dispute
resolution, to settle, and to propose or to accept a compromise with
respect to, any claim existing in favor of, or against, the principal
based on or involving any banking transaction or to intervene in any
action or proceeding relating thereto;

16. To hire, to discharge, and to compensate any attorney, accountant,
expert witness or other assistant or assistants when the agent shall
think such action to be desirable for the proper execution by him of any
of the powers described in this section, and for the keeping of needed
records thereof; and

17. In general, and in addition to all the specific acts in this
section enumerated, to do any other act or acts, which the principal can
do through an agent, in connection with any banking transaction which
does or might in any way affect the financial or other interests of the
principal.

18. If a power of attorney requires that two or more agents act
together as co-agents, one or more agents may delegate to the co-agent
the authority to conduct banking transactions if the principal initialed
subject (o) in the grant of authority provisions of paragraph (f) of the
statutory short form set forth in section 15-1513 of this title.

All powers described in this section 5-1502D of the general
obligations law shall be exercisable equally with respect to any banking
transaction engaged in by the principal at the giving of the power of
attorney or thereafter engaged in, and whether conducted in the state of
New York or elsewhere.