Kansas · K.S.A. 58-652, 58-658Kansas power of attorney at closing: durable wording, notarization and recorded revocations

Under the Kansas power of attorney act, an agent's authority survives the principal's disability or uncertainty about whether the principal is alive only if the power is called a "durable power of attorney", contains one of the statutory durable statements in substance, and is signed by the principal and dated and acknowledged under the revised uniform law on notarial acts; a principal who is physically unable to sign may have an adult designee sign in the principal's presence and at the principal's direction before a notary (K.S.A. 58-652(a)). A power of attorney doesn't have to be recorded to be valid, and it may be recorded like a conveyance of land; once recorded, a revocation must be recorded the same way to be effective, while an unrecorded power may be revoked by a recorded revocation or another appropriate way (58-652(c)). A third person acting in good faith may rely on a notarized power of attorney, whose signature is presumed genuine, and without actual knowledge has no duty to inquire into a long list of matters – including whether the principal is alive or the authority was modified – but not, for transactions affecting real estate, whether the power or its modification or termination has been recorded (58-658(a)).