Lasting Power of Attorney
What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?
Since 1st October 2007 the Rules relating to Powers of Attorney have changed and introduced the Lasting Power of Attorney which is a legal document where a person creating the document gives another, who is to be the Attorney, the authority to make certain decisions on their behalf in relation to either their property and financial affairs or their general welfare, in which case it means you would need to create two Lasting Powers of Attorney as procedures and forms for preparation of both are separate and different.
Lasting Power of Attorney Property and Financial Affairs
This allows your attorneys to manage your financial and property affairs. Your Attorney will be able to assume control over all your property unless you have put restrictions in the LPA.
If there are no restrictions then it would include selling your property, operate your bank accounts and dealing with your savings and investments, receive income and pay expenses, claim benefits, do all sorts of things you could personally do with your property and belongings if you had no LPA. They could also make customary gifts at Christmas and Birthdays that you would normally make to people related or connected to you.
Lasting Power of Attorney Welfare
This allows you to make health and welfare decisions for you. It can only be used if you do not have the necessary mental capacity to make your own decisions. If you want your Attorney to be able to refuse or consent to medical treatment you must include suitable wording in the LPA.
Your Attorneys may make decisions about you including such decisions relating to where you live, your day to day care, making arrangements for medical treatment, arrangements for assessments including community care, consenting to or refusing treatment, social activities and dealing with your general correspondence.
Why is an LPA needed?
One could regard the LPA as an insurance policy against problems that may arise in the future. Planning ahead it is an important administrative take to comply with and it ensures that your administration is in order because it would provide instructions while you are of sound mind in anticipation of the possibility of your not being able or capable at some point in the future.
An LPA can be used before you lose mental capacity but making one does not prevent you from managing your own affairs, it is only in the contingency that you become incapable. Although there is no guarantee of what your state of mind would be in the future dementia is an increasing condition in elderly people. A one-off document prepared during your lifetime could be all that is needed to ensure that your loved ones are able to deal with your financial affairs on your behalf without any complications.
Strength of the LPA
An LPA is a legally binding document. Forms for LPA's are statutory and the contents and nature are laid down in legislation and in the statutory rules.
It is important that the property forms are completed properly as the Public Guardianship Office and the Court of Protection determine questions about the validity and interpretation of the LPA's. Any application to those bodies involves the forms needing to be completed correctly as they have a discretion to reject applications they don't feel have been completed properly.
