What Is a General Power of Attorney?

Question: What is a general power of attorney? What powers does it carry? And how is it made?

Answer: Any person can give a general power of attorney to someone. Its scope is this: when a special power of attorney is given regarding a property, that is for a specific task, but when a general power of attorney is given regarding a property, it means that whatever powers the owner had in relation to that property, the general attorney also has them — he can sell it, mortgage it, gift it, transfer it — in short, he can do all work related to that property, which is otherwise the right of the owner alone. A general power of attorney also includes the powers of a special power of attorney, along with all other powers. To issue a general power of attorney, a deed is drawn up on stamp paper, in light of the proof of ownership, and a certified copy of that proof of ownership, issued by whichever department holds it — whether it is a housing society, the revenue department, the land records department, excise and taxation, or the LDA — whichever department holds the proof of ownership and has authority to change it, a copy is obtained from that department for the purpose of issuing the general power of attorney, and that copy is attached to the general power of attorney.

When you go to a lawyer, he will prepare the set of documents. After preparing it, the lawyer will then write your application — for the person granting the power — stating that they cannot come in person to submit this application, so permission should be granted for it to be registered through a Local Commission, for their signature/thumbprint to be obtained [there]. In Lahore, lawyers handle this; in other cities, the concept of a Local Commission does not even exist there, no Local Commission is issued there, and the owner has to go in person. Once the set is complete, they will be submitted at the Registrar's office. After submission, if the owner is present in person, the Sub-Registrar will have everyone's signatures/thumbprints taken in his presence on all documents — the fee has to be paid into the government treasury, calculated according to value. You will get all these details on the spot. Registering a general power of attorney has become quite expensive now. It is very important for the person to whom the authority is being given to have all signatures/thumbprints taken in his presence, because this is a very big responsibility — tomorrow, whatever you do on the basis of this general power of attorney, if the owner challenges it, or the owner, or a third party, claims that I purchased directly from the owner, that this power of attorney is forged — if even one witness's signature/thumbprint turns out to be forged, if the identifier's signature/thumbprint turns out to be forged, your general power of attorney is worthless. It becomes a bogus and forged document, and then it has to be proven in court what actually happened — that even one witness's thumbprint/signature came out forged. That is why the person to whom authority is being given must ensure that all signatures/thumbprints are taken in his presence, when the lawyer has them all done.