Lasting Powers of Attorney

There may come a time when, because you are incapable of managing your property and financial affairs or personal welfare, you will need someone to do this for you. A Lasting Power of Attorney ("LPA") allows you to decide now who should act on your behalf should you lose mental capacity to deal with matters yourself.

The LPA is a legal document that you (the donor) make in order to appoint someone you trust, such as a friend, relative or a professional person, to be your attorney. The LPA can be drawn up at any time whilst you have the mental capacity to do so. It can only be used after it has been registered at the Office of the Public Guardian.

There are two types of LPA – LPA for Property and Financial Affairs and an LPA for Personal Welfare. The LPA for Property and Financial Affairs allows your attorney to make day to day decisions in respect of your money and property. The LPA for Health and Welfare can also only be used after it has been registered and the donor has lost the mental capacity to make decisions for himself or herself. It allows your attorney to make important decisions in connection with the donor’s day to day care and whether to consent or refuse medical examination or treatment on the donor’s behalf.

You can appoint more than one attorney and you can decide how they should act and include restrictions and guidelines.

We can fully advise you on the benefits of a LPA and will give advice as to the merits of preparing one in your particular circumstances.

For a set fee we will prepare and register the document for you. Once the document has been prepared, should you not wish to register it straight away, we will store it in our strong room until such later time as it is needed.