Prince George's County - POA Litigation
Jul 15, 2025OUTCOME: Judgment in favor of Client
Katie represented the son of a deceased woman in a dispute over her real property. The case centered on a properly executed Power of Attorney (POA) that the decedent granted to her son shortly before h ... er death. Acting under that authority, he transferred her solely owned home into his name, consistent with her long-stated wishes and legal rights under Maryland law. After her death, the decedent’s surviving spouse filed suit, challenging the POA and claiming the home should be considered marital property. He alleged fraud, undue influence, and lack of capacity, despite offering no medical records, expert testimony, or credible factual basis to support those claims. Katie successfully defended the validity of the POA and the legitimacy of the real property transfer. Multiple witnesses testified to the decedent’s competence, intentions, and consistent desire to place her son in control of her affairs. The court ultimately found the POA was valid and the deed properly executed. Importantly, the court rejected the argument that the property transfer could be undone under a marital property theory. In Maryland, the concept of “marital property” is rooted in family law and divorce, rather than estate litigation. Property that is individually titled and lawfully transferred before death falls outside of any marital property analysis. This case serves as a reminder that POA law operates independently and must be evaluated on its own statutory terms, not based on equitable assumptions from unrelated areas of law.
