What is a protection mandate?

You must be of full age and capable when you draft the mandate

You must be of full age and have full capacity when you draft the mandate. Your ability to confer a protection mandate will be verified by a notary or the witnesses, depending on how you proceed.

You can modify your protection mandate if your mandatary’s or your situation changes, such as if you get a divorce or one of your loved ones dies.

You can appoint one or several “mandataries”

The person who confers the power on another individual to perform acts in his or her name is called the “mandator.” The person who receives this power is called the “mandatary.” We then say that the mandatary has been given a “mandate.”

Generally, a protection mandate has only one mandatary, but it’s also possible to appoint several. This means you can decide whether a single mandatary will take care of you personally and your property or whether various mandataries will share the tasks.

You can also appoint a replacement mandatary in case the mandatary is not able to take on the responsibility.

Did you know?

The mandatary is often someone close to the mandator, such as a family member.

It’s also possible to appoint a professional, however, such as an accountant, a lawyer, or even a trust company to take care of your property.

To ensure the protection of your person and/or the administration of your property

You’re the one who chooses the scope of your protection mandate and the responsibilities to confer on your mandatary.

You can express your wishes in a general way or give very precise instructions for a particular task.

Your wishes in the mandate may concern solely the protection of your person or the administration of your property, or both at once.

For the protection of your person

You can determine, for example:

• where you want to live
• your wishes concerning medical care (e.g., examinations, samples, treatments, etc. ) and your mandatary’s authority to consent to or refuse treatments on your behalf
• your end-of-life wishes, such as the care you want or do not want to receive and organ donation.

Did you know?

You can also prepare advance medical directives to indicate whether or not you’d like to receive certain medical treatments should you become incapacitated.

These directives will prevail over the wishes you express in your protection mandate.

For the administration of your property

You can plan, for example:

• the management of your income
• the payment of your bills
• ways to grow your assets
• the maintenance and preservation of your property
• the sale of your home.

You can also include other elements in your protection mandate. For example, you can:

• provide for remuneration of the mandatary
• plan to be periodically subject to medical and psychosocial assessments
• appoint a tutor for your minor children.

You’ll continue to be involved in decisions

Whenever possible, your mandatary must involve you in decisions made about you and keep you informed.

Decisions affecting you must be made in your interest and ensure your well-being.

Your mandatary must respect your rights, protect your autonomy, and take into account:

• your needs
• your abilities
• your wishes and preferences.

Role and responsibilities of a mandatary (Gouvernement du Québec)

Mandates made before a notary or before two witnesses

You can choose to make your protection mandate before a notary or before two witnesses.

If you choose to make your protection mandate before witnesses, you can draft it yourself or ask another person, such as a lawyer, to do it for you.

Drawing up your protection mandate (Gouvernement du Québec)

How much does it cost?

The costs for preparing a protection mandate vary according to the content, the form, and the professionals consulted.

The cost of a protection mandate made before a notary is approximately $250.