A mandate before witnesses:

• You or another person, such as a lawyer, can write the mandate;
• You must tell the two (2) witnesses the document is your mandate (you do not have to tell them what is in the mandate);
• You must sign the mandate before your witnesses, or tell them it is your signature if you have already signed the mandate;
• The witnesses must agree you are of sound mind, and they sign the mandate;
• The witnesses cannot be included in the mandate;
• You can have a lawyer register your mandate before witnesses in the Registre des dispositions testamentaires et des mandats du Québec (Quebec Register of Wills and Mandates) kept by the Barreau du Québec (Quebec Bar).

3.5 What should I include in a mandate in case of incapacity?
[Student Manual, page 18]

You can include whatever you like in a mandate. You can:

• name two mandataries, one to take care of your property and one to take care of your person, property or both;
• name a replacement mandatary if the first one can no longer be your mandatary;
• say how you want your property to be managed;
• say whether the mandatary is to be paid and how much;
• say what type of care you would like to receive. For example, you are seriously injured in an accident and do not want to be kept on life support (sometimes called a living will).

3.6 Should I tell anyone about my mandate in case of incapacity?
[Student Manual, page 19]

It is a good idea to tell someone you have a mandate, but you do not have to tell them what is in it. It is your decision. You should tell the person you have named as mandatary about the mandate, because he/she has to agree to accept this responsibility. You can tell your mandatary where to find the original copy.