Signing checklist for Louisiana

The signing steps in Louisiana law, step by step. Pick your documents to see them.

Checked against official sources: October 31, 2026.

Short answer

This checklist lists the signing rules in Louisiana law. It does not check whether your document is valid.

Financial power of attorney: Signed by you; the law requires no notary or witnesses
Health care directive: Signed by you; the law sets no notary or witness rule

Sign it No particular form is required for a mandate itself. If the law requires a certain form for the act your mandatary will do, the mandate must be in that same form.
Law: La. Civ. Code art. 2993
Notary or witnesses Louisiana law does not require a mandate to be in any particular form. But when the act the mandatary will perform must be in a certain form (for example, a sale or mortgage of immovable property, which must be in writing), the mandate authorizing it must be in that same form. Some powers must be given expressly.
Law: La. Civ. Code art. 2993
If it may be used for real estate Authority to sell, buy, mortgage or lease a thing must be given expressly, though the property need not be specifically described. Because the act itself must be in a certain form, the mandate must be in that same form. Revoking a recorded mandate is effective against third parties relying on the public records only once the revocation is recorded.

Sign it A mandate giving health care authority must say so expressly. No particular form is required by the Civil Code.
Law: La. Civ. Code art. 2997(6); La. R.S. 40:1151.1(15), 40:1151.4(A)(2)(b)
Notary or witnesses To give someone authority over your health care, your mandate must expressly say so. The Civil Code sets no particular form for the mandate itself. If you want the person to be able to make a declaration about life-sustaining procedures for you, the designation must be a written instrument signed by you in the presence of at least two witnesses.
Law: La. Civ. Code art. 2997(6); La. R.S. 40:1151.1(15), 40:1151.4(A)(2)(b)
Who cannot witness A written instrument in which you designate a person to make a life-sustaining-procedures declaration for you, if you become a qualified patient unable to communicate, must be signed in the presence of at least two witnesses. For the living will statute, a witness is a competent adult who is not related to you by blood or marriage and would not inherit any part of your estate.
Law: La. Civ. Code art. 2997(6); La. R.S. 40:1151.1(15), 40:1151.4(A)(2)(b)

Registry (optional) Living Will Declaration Registry (Louisiana Secretary of State). Fee: $20 to register a declaration (you receive a wallet card and a 'Do Not Resuscitate' bracelet); $20 more for a certified copy; $5 to file a revocation. Official text
Law: La. R.S. 40:1151.2, 40:1151.3
Give copies to the right people Keep the signed documents in a safe place and give copies to your health care proxy and your doctors. Some states have registries that store an advance directive for doctors and your proxy.

This checklist lists the signing rules in Louisiana law. It does not check whether your document is valid.