These slides describe what is meant by a Power of Attorney and the manner in which a Principal can delegate authority to a Power of Attorney holder. This is from a lecture in Conveyancing conducted for the final year students of the Sri Lanka Law College in 2007

1. POWERS OF
ATTORNEY
Powers of Attorney Ordinance
No. 33 of 1939
Ajithaa Edirimane, LLB MLB
Attorney-at-Law & Notary Public
COPYRIGHT Ajithaa Edirimane - No part of this slide
presentation shall be copied or extracted or used in
anyway without the publisher’s permission -
ajithaa2001@yahoo.com

2. What is a Power of Attorney
 It is a written power or authority (other than
given to a Attorney-at-Law)
 Given by one person to another
 To perform any act or carry on any trade or
business
 Executed before 2 witnesses or
 Executed before or attested by a Notary Public
or by a Justice of Peace, Registrar or Judge /
Magistrate or Ambassador or other Diplomatic
Representative of Sri Lanka

3. Registration of a Power of Attorney
Sec. 3
 An Attorney if he/so wishes, may have his Power of
Attorney registered by producing to the Registrar
General:
1. The Original and
2. A Certified True copy with
3. An Affidavit to the effect that ‘to the best of his
knowledge and belief such Power of Attorney is
genuine and is still in force’
4. The Registrar will register by endorsing on it a
Certificate signed by him, indicating that it is registered
and giving date, Volume / folio of registration.

4. Cancellation of Power of Attorney
Sec. 4
 A grantor or Attorney may if they so desire have
the cancellation registered by:
 Notifying such cancellation to the Registrar
 With an Affidavit verifying such fact and
 Have such notice published in the Gazette and
in three issues of daily papers in English,
Sinhala and Tamil
 Till such notification and publication the Grantor
will be held liable and bound by the acts of his
Attorney

5. Inspection of Powers of Attorney documents and
request for copies – Sec. 7
 The Registrar General shall at the request of any
person applying in writing shall
 issue a copy of a Power of Attorney filed in his
office with
 A Certification giving date of registration, by
whom filed, and volume / folio
Prima facie Evidence : Such certification issued by the Registrar
General will be prima facie evidence in any judicial proceedings
even if the Power of Attorney is not produced.
 Powers of Attorney (amendment) Act No. 14 of 2013 revised fees for registration