Title 10, Armed ForcesRelease 119-110

§1044b Military Powers of Attorney: Requirement for Recognition by States

Title 10 › Subtitle A — General Military Law › PART II — PERSONNEL › CHAPTER 53 — MISCELLANEOUS RIGHTS AND BENEFITS › § 1044b

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

States must accept military powers of attorney and treat them the same as powers of attorney made under state law. A military power of attorney does not have to follow any state rules about form, content, formalities, or recording. A military power of attorney is any general or special power of attorney notarized under section 1044a or other state or federal law. The Secretary will make rules saying the document should include a notice explaining these protections, but the protections still apply even if the notice is missing. "State" includes the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and U.S. possessions.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §1044b

Armed Forces, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Instruments To Be Given Legal Effect Without Regard to State Law.—

A military power of attorney—

(1)is exempt from any requirement of form, substance, formality, or recording that is provided for powers of attorney under the laws of a State; and

(2)shall be given the same legal effect as a power of attorney prepared and executed in accordance with the laws of the State concerned.

(b)Military Power of Attorney.—

For purposes of this section, a military power of attorney is any general or special power of attorney that is notarized in accordance with section 1044a of this title or other applicable State or Federal law.

(c)Statement To Be Included.—

(1)Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary concerned, each military power of attorney shall contain a statement that sets forth the provisions of subsection (a).

(2)Paragraph (1) shall not be construed to make inapplicable the provisions of subsection (a) to a military power of attorney that does not include a statement described in that paragraph.

(d)State Defined.—

In this section, the term “State” includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and a possession of the United States.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 1044b

Title 10, Armed Forces

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110