Legal Q&A · Property Transfer

Can a lawyer sign an addendum to the purchase agreement on my behalf under a power of attorney while registration is pending?

Law as at 3 October 2026

Answered by , Czech and Slovak attorney, admitted to the Slovak and Czech Bars (SAK 300422 · ČAK 19654).

Short answer

Yes, if the power of attorney authorises them to do so. The Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre Authority takes the view that the Land Registry should accept an addendum signed by a lawyer within the scope of the power of attorney even if it changes an essential term of the agreement. You should therefore define the scope of the power of attorney precisely and make changes to the price, the subject matter of the transfer or the parties subject to your own written consent.

The Land Registry has suspended the proceedings and requested that defects in the agreement be remedied, for example by correcting the identification of a land parcel. The lawyer you authorised to represent you in the registration proceedings may sign an addendum on your behalf if the power of attorney permits it. This saves time, particularly if one of the parties lives abroad, but it also means that the agreement may be amended without your signature.

What an authorised representative may sign

A power of attorney must specify the scope of the representative’s authority, and if the legal act is performed in writing, the power of attorney must also be in writing (Section 31(1) and (4) of the Civil Code). If the representative acts within that authority, the rights and obligations arise directly for you. Although a lawyer is bound by your instructions (Section 2(2) of the Legal Profession Act), instructions not set out in the power of attorney do not affect the legal effects of their actions unless the other party knew of them (Section 32(2) of the Civil Code).

In Cadastral Bulletin 1/2025, the Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre Authority of the Slovak Republic (ÚGKK) addressed a case in which a lawyer holding a power of attorney covering all acts connected with registration, including amendments, addenda and supplements, replaced the entire text of the agreement through an addendum and also changed an essential term. The Land Registry required the contracting parties themselves to sign the addendum and have their signatures certified. ÚGKK takes the view that the Land Registry should have accepted the addendum because it fell within the scope of the power of attorney. According to ÚGKK, if the Land Registry has doubts, it may suspend the proceedings and ask the party to comment on the scope of the power of attorney and on what the lawyer has done.

When a lawyer exceeds the scope of the power of attorney

The following quotation is reproduced in its original language:

Ak splnomocnenec prekročil svoje oprávnenie vyplývajúce z plnomocenstva, je splnomocniteľ viazaný, len pokiaľ toto prekročenie schválil. Ak však splnomocniteľ neoznámi osobe, s ktorou splnomocnenec konal, svoj nesúhlas bez zbytočného odkladu po tom, čo sa o prekročení oprávnenia dozvedel, platí, že prekročenie schválil.

§ 33 ods. 1 Občianskeho zákonníka

If you learn of an addendum that you believe exceeds the scope of the power of attorney, you should therefore immediately notify the other party in writing that you do not approve it, and also inform the Land Registry. If the addendum falls within the scope of the power of attorney, subsequent disapproval will generally not alter its legal effects.

Formal requirements for the power of attorney and addendum

  • If a party’s signature on the agreement must be certified, typically the transferor’s signature, their signature on the power of attorney must also be certified. For a transfer agreement authorised by a lawyer or drawn up as a notarial deed, signature certification is required neither on the agreement nor on the power of attorney (Section 42(3) of the Cadastral Act and Section 30(4), letter (c)).
  • Once the registration application has been filed, clerical and calculation errors may be corrected only by an addendum or, in the case of a notarial deed, through the procedure laid down in separate legislation (Section 42(4)). For a transfer agreement, both parties’ declarations of intent must appear in the same document (Section 46(2) of the Civil Code).
  • If the agreement was authorised by a lawyer, ÚGKK stated in an earlier interpretation in Cadastral Bulletin 2/2012 that the addendum must also be authorised by a lawyer. Otherwise, according to ÚGKK, the Land Registry will not apply the narrower scope of review under Section 31(2) to the agreement and addendum.

We discuss the correction procedure in the question on correcting an error in an agreement after filing the registration application.

On whom the Land Registry serves documents

If a party has a representative authorised to act throughout the proceedings, the Land Registry serves documents requiring personal service, such as a request to remedy defects, only on that representative (Section 25(5) of the Administrative Procedure Code). The time limit stated in the request therefore runs from service on the lawyer. The document is served on you as well only if you are required to do something personally in the proceedings.

How to define the scope of the power of attorney

In a power of attorney for registration proceedings, distinguish between what the lawyer may do independently and what requires your consent. They may independently file the application, supply additional attachments, receive documents and correct obvious clerical errors by an addendum. Make changes to the purchase price, the subject matter of the transfer, the parties or the payment terms subject to your written consent. Also agree that the lawyer will inform you without delay of every request from the Land Registry. We explain what to watch for in a power of attorney requested by the other party in the question on an irrevocable power of attorney.

How we can help

We will prepare and file the registration application under a power of attorney with a precisely defined scope as part of our application for registration in the Land Registry service. If the Land Registry issues a request, we will prepare an addendum and go through it with you before it is signed as part of our suspended Land Registry proceedings and refused applications service. When providing lawyer authorisation of a property transfer agreement, we will also authorise the addendum.

This answer provides general information on the law as at 3 October 2026. It does not constitute legal services or replace an assessment of an individual case. The details of your situation may differ. Book a consultation to discuss them.

More legal questions

All questions and answers
  1. An apartment is being auctioned because of arrears owed to the building’s owners. Will the bank’s mortgage be extinguished? According to ÚGKK’s interpretation, priority is determined by the order of registration on the property title sheet. A mortgage registered before the apartment owners’ statutory lien therefore survives the auction, and the successful bidder acquires the apartment subject to it. In one dispute, the Košice Regional Court ruled differently and granted the apartment owners priority because ownership of the apartment had first been acquired before the mortgage was registered. When satisfying a bank’s claim that is due, a distinction must be drawn between a voluntary auction and an enforcement auction; the cited ÚGKK interpretation concerning deletion of a senior lien related to an enforcement auction.
  2. The ownership record prohibits dealings without the tax authority’s consent. Can a bank sell the property as a secured creditor? Yes, if the bank is the first-ranking secured creditor and notifies the tax authority in advance of enforcement of its lien. The authority’s consent is then unnecessary. However, the bank may sell by direct sale, without an auction, only if the lien does not secure a consumer loan. If the bank sells in the owner’s name, according to ÚGKK, the Cadastre checks whether the tax authority received the notification before the sale agreement was concluded. If the bank does not rank first, or the owner sells the property themselves, the tax authority’s prior consent is required.
  3. The previous owner built a garage in the courtyard, but it does not appear on the title sheet. Did we buy it together with the house? If the garage is a separate building and was not covered by the registration of the transfer, ÚGKK’s interpretation is that you did not acquire it when buying the house, because ownership of immovable property under a contract arises only upon registration. It can first be registered in the name of the person who had it built, namely the seller, who can then transfer it to you under a new contract. For a building dating from 1976 to 1989 without an occupancy approval document, ÚGKK considers it an obstacle if the seller transferred the land before 1 April 2024 and held no other right to it. In that situation, the solution must be assessed individually and may sometimes require court proceedings.
  4. We built our house during our marriage, but only my husband is listed on the title deed. How can I have my name registered too? If the house came into existence during the marriage and no exception or restriction of the scope of BSM applies, it forms part of the spouses’ community property regardless of who is listed on the title deed. According to ÚGKK’s interpretation, the land registry will amend the registration by a record entry based on an application, the marriage certificate and a solemn declaration by both spouses. ÚGKK does not consider a gift agreement between the spouses an appropriate route. If your husband will not sign the declaration, the court will decide, on a claim being brought, whether the house forms part of BSM.

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Mgr. Patrik Tulinský, LL.M. Czech and Slovak attorney · SAK 300422 · ČAK 19654

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