Lasting Powers of Attorney
General Power
This a document in which you give power to someone else to deal with something on your behalf. The power is limited to a specific transaction only. Often such a power will be used to sign a contract on your behalf when you are overseas. Once the transaction is finished the power also comes to an end.
Lasting Power of Attorney (Property)
This is a document that will stay in place for your lifetime. In this document you appoint specific people to look after your financial affairs should you ever lose mental capacity.
How many Attorneys can I appoint?
Up to four people can be appointed.
Does anyone else need to be told about my LPA?
It is up to you who should be told about your LPA. If you wish to inform your family of the power’s existence, they have to be notified in a set way. If you do not want to tell the rest of your family the document must be certified by two people. The certification of the document has to be by a professionally qualified person. If you notify your family only one certification is needed.
The document is drawn up, signed and certified. What happens next?
To be effective the document must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian.
Our service will draw up all the papers for you, do all the necessary notifications to your family and submit the papers of your behalf for registration. To find out more, contact us.
Lasting Power of Attorney (Welfare)
This document will stay in place for your lifetime. In this LPA you appoint specific people to look after your interests should you ever require long term care/ medical assistance as you get older.
The same rules apply to this document as with the LPA for Property.
What is the difference between a Property LPA and a Welfare LPA?
You are stating who should be consulted about your long term needs. The people you appoint will be able to discuss matters on your behalf with social services, your doctor and be there to assist you and ensure your views are listened to (even if you are not able to do this yourself).
Our service will go through the forms with you, and discuss in confidence your wishes and what is most appropriate for you. We will then draw up the papers and register the papers on your behalf.