Lasting Powers of Attorney & Court of Protection
Lasting Powers of Attorney
If someone were to lose their mental capacity, and not be able to make decisions for themselves, under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, you are able to grant a “Lasting Power of Attorney” (LPA) prior to such incapacity. This is a legal document under which a person (the donor) grants to another person/persons (the Attorney) authority to make certain decisions on his or her behalf.
There are two types of LPA:
- A Financial decisions LPA, which provides your Attorney with authority to deal with your property and financial affairs and which can come into effect immediately on registration with the Office of the Public Guardian.
- A Health and Care decisions LPA, which provides your Attorney with authority to make health and welfare decisions on your behalf when you lack mental capacity to do so. Within this document you can also provide authority to your Attorney to give or refuse consent to life sustaining treatment. This LPA only comes into effect when you have lost your capacity.
Our specialist Solicitors can meet with you to help you to decide which LPA is best for you and can then complete the correct documentation for you, giving you peace of mind. We can offer you a fixed fee for doing this so that you know exactly how much this is going to cost you.
Court of Protection
What would happen if you lost your capacity and could no longer make decisions for yourself and you had not made a Lasting Power of Attorney?
It would be necessary for a member of your family, a close friend or professional adviser to make an application to the Court of Protection for the appointment of a deputy who will make decisions on your behalf. This is both costly and time consuming in terms of making the application, paying the annual supervision fees, an annual insurance bond and fees for submitting annual accounts to the Court.
Having a valid Lasting Power of Attorney means you would avoid a third party having to apply to the Court of Protection for a deputyship order.
Download our Making Lasting Powers of Attorney booklet
Individuals & Family
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