After getting a divorce, there are immediate estate planning issues that have to be addressed and overlooking even one of these could set you up for potential failure if a now estranged spouse is making decisions on your behalf. In the first part of this three-part blog series to discuss the benefits of updating your health care proxy, now it is time to update your power of attorney. 
At some point, you and your spouse probably executed powers of attorney with one another. Trying to remember where they are, is the first step in updating these materials. If you can’t, contact the attorney who drafted these powers of attorneys for you.
If this is a durable power of attorney, originally created, this likely gave your spouse access to all of your assets and accounts while you are incompetent. These include assets in your name alone. This should very much concern you if the divorce is not amicable and your attorney can help you revoke that initial document and execute a new one. You may also be responsible for providing notice to the current spouse about ramifications so make sure you clarify this with your lawyer in Pasadena.
