What is the difference between a durable and a general power of attorney in Florida?
A durable power of attorney keeps working if you lose capacity; a non-durable one stops right when your family needs it. Here is what Florida Chapter 709 says for document prep. This is not legal advice.
In Florida, a durable power of attorney stays in effect if you later become incapacitated, and a non-durable one ends at that moment. "General" describes how much authority you grant. "Durable" describes whether that authority survives incapacity. So one document can be both. But in Florida, a catch-all line like "my agent can do anything I can do" grants no authority under § 709.2201. Each power has to be listed.
Durability is not automatic. Under § 709.2104, a power of attorney is durable only if it says, in substance, "This durable power of attorney is not terminated by subsequent incapacity of the principal except as provided in chapter 709, Florida Statutes." Without that language, § 709.2109(1)(b) ends the agent's authority when you become incapacitated. That is often the exact week a bill, a sale, or a bank call needs someone to act.
Some powers need even more. Gifts, trust changes, and beneficiary changes need your separate signature or initials under § 709.2202. Every Florida power of attorney, durable or not, is signed with two witnesses and a notary acknowledgment under § 709.2105.
ClickDocs prepares a Florida financial durable power of attorney for $89, with the § 709.2104 durability language built in. Preview before you pay.