Cancellation Does Not Undo Prior Acts

Acts validly performed by the agent before the date of revocation remain binding on the principal. Cancellation operates prospectively: it ends the agent’s authority going forward; it does not reach back to unwind transactions already completed. A property sold, a contract signed, a payment authorised, or a filing made by the agent before revocation stands as the principal’s act, on the same footing as if the principal had performed it directly. The right of the principal to revoke does not include a right to undo what was done while the authority was in force.

Cancellation Does Not Automatically Notify Anyone

The legal act of revoking the Power of Attorney and the communication of that revocation to the parties affected by it are separate operations. The notarised cancellation deed, on its own, sits in the Notary register. It does not place itself before the agent, the bank, the registrar, the developer, or the counterparty. Without notice, Article 955 of the Civil Code provides that the cancellation is not effective against parties acting in good faith. Notification is the principal’s responsibility.

Cancellation Does Not Remove Old Copies from Circulation

Physical and digital copies of the original Power of Attorney may be held by the agent, by counterparties, by banks, by registrars, and by anyone to whom the agent presented the document while it was in force. Cancellation does not recall those copies. The original may continue to surface, on its face appearing valid, until the holder is informed of the cancellation or checks the Notary register against it. Practical recovery of copies, where it is feasible, is a separate exercise from the legal cancellation procedure.

Issuing a New Power of Attorney Does Not Cancel an Old One

A common misconception is that a fresh Power of Attorney granted to a different agent supersedes an earlier one. It does not, by itself, terminate the earlier instrument. Where the principal wants the earlier authority extinguished, the earlier Power of Attorney must be expressly revoked through the procedure described elsewhere on this site. Until that is done, two valid documents may exist in parallel, and either may be presented and acted upon.

Cancellation Does Not Reverse Registration on the Underlying Asset

For a property Power of Attorney, cancellation prevents the agent from making further use of the authority. It does not reverse transactions completed under it. If the agent has, while authorised, transferred property, executed mortgages, or signed lease agreements, those acts are reflected on the relevant register and stand. The property record reflects what was filed; cancellation operates against future use of the document, not against past use of it. The same principle applies to corporate filings, court filings, and vehicle registrations made under the authority before cancellation.

Cancellation Does Not Resolve Disputes About Past Conduct

Where the agent is alleged to have acted beyond the scope of the authority, in breach of duty, or in bad faith, cancellation is not the remedy. The remedy lies in civil claims for breach of contract or breach of agency duties, and in criminal complaints where the conduct amounts to an offence. Cancellation ends the relationship; it does not adjudicate it. A principal who suspects misuse of authority should treat cancellation and dispute resolution as parallel tracks.

The Right Frame

Cancellation is a forward-looking control mechanism. Its purpose is to stop authority continuing. It is not a remedy for the past, a substitute for notification, or a self-executing act of communication. Treated as what it is, the procedure is reliable and well established. Treated as something more, it can leave the principal exposed to consequences the cancellation itself was never designed to prevent.

Execution

Drafting, registration, and the related steps that surround a cancellation are handled operationally at poas.ae.