Power of Attorney

There are lots of things we can do during our lifetime to ensure that our wishes are met, and our family is protected after our death.

However, often we forget about planning for our old age or do not consider a time when we may not have the capacity to make our own decisions.

It is wise to consider forward planning to choose someone to manage our affairs if we are ever unable to do so.  This is where Powers of Attorney play a hugely important role.

A Power of Attorney is a legal instrument created by a person to grant to another person the authority to act on their behalf.  A Power of Attorney is a very powerful document as the person making the Power of Attorney is handing their affairs over to the attorney and trusting the Attorney to act correctly.

There are three main types of Power of Attorney used in England. These are:

• Ordinary or General Power of Attorney
• Enduring Power of Attorney
• Lasting Power of Attorney

To make any type of Power of Attorney, you must have capacity.  If there is a lack of capacity, then an application to the Court of Protection may be required for the appointment of a Deputy.

Our specialist team can help you and your family with:

• Lasting Powers of Attorney for Property & Financial Affairs & Health & Welfare (P&FA and H&W)
• Lasting Powers of Attorney for Business (BLPA)
• General Powers of Attorney
• Registration of Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPA)
• Applications to the Court of Protection

Around 250,000 applications to register Lasting Powers of Attorney were made in the first quarter of 2020, with an estimated 1 million Lasting Powers of Attorney to be registered for the whole of 2020.

Check out what some of our past clients have to say about our Wills, Trusts, Probate & Court of Protection team and the services they provide here.