Powers of Attorney

PROPERTY AND FINANCIAL DECISIONS

Your attorneys can make decisions about your finances, such as paying your bills, operating your bank accounts and savings, making and selling investments or buying and selling your home.

HEALTH AND CARE DECISIONS

Your attorneys can make decisions about your medical treatment and whether you live in your own home or move in to care. You can also let your attorneys make decisions about life- sustaining treatment.

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• You choose who makes decisions for you as no one can automatically deal with your affairs, regardless of whether they are your next of kin.
• You can appoint professional attorneys such as Williamsons Solicitors.
• By signing the document, your attorneys legally agree to act in your best interests at all times.
• There are safeguarding measures in place as any abuse can be reported and investigated by the Office of the Public Guardian
• LPAs are a safe way of maintaining control over decisions made for you as they must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before they can be used.
• You can also choose who gets told when your LPA is registered so they have an opportunity to raise concerns.

If you do not have Lasting Powers of Attorney in place and you lose capacity, your family will not have the legal authority to deal with your affairs.

Your family would have to apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed as your “Deputy” in relation to your financial affairs which is a long and costly process.

The Court is very reluctant to intervene with Health and Care decisions and it is very difficult to apply to the Court of Protection for such applications.

If your family do not apply to the Court, the local authority may do so and they would be making decisions on your behalf.

You can no longer create an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA), but EPAs signed before 2007 can still be used.

An EPA gives someone called an attorney the legal power to deal with someone’s affairs and make decisions on their behalf. Crucially EPAs can only be used in relation to financial decisions.

When capacity has been lost and someone is unable to make decisions for themselves, the EPA must be registered with the Office of The Public Guardian.

If you need to use an EPA, Williamsons Solicitors can assist with completing the necessary paperwork required to register the document.

DO YOU NEED A LASTING POWER OF ATTORNEY IF YOU ALREADY HAVE AN ENDURING POWER OF ATTORNEY?

EPAs can still be used; however, you may still want to consider reviewing the document to ensure it still meets your wishes. You may also want to consider making a Lasting Power of Attorney for health and welfare decisions as your EPA will not cover these.