A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document that is only valid in your lifetime. It is a legal document that allows you to appoint someone you trust to make decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so. There are two types of LPA:
This type lets someone you trust make decisions about your money and property. It can be used whilst you still have mental capacity (if you allow it) , or if you lose capacity later. These can include:
This type covers decisions about your personal wellbeing including:
It can only be used if you lose mental capacity
In it, you give people you trust the legal power to make decisions on your behalf.
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A Will sets out how you want your money, property, and possessions to be distributed after your death and allows you to appoint guardians for children under the age of 18.
We can’t predict when our time will come to an end. You’ve worked hard every day, putting in the effort to get where you are now. Ultimately, we want to share the results of our lifelong work with our loved ones. Giving the product of our life’s work as a gift is the biggest and best thing we can do – it’s everything we own. It’s crucial to make sure this is done right – by writing a Will.
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At MapleWills, we understand the importance of Wills and estate planning. Our experienced and compassionate team is here to guide you through process, ensuring you have a legally sound Will that captures all your requirements .
We’re dedicated to making sure your legacy is preserved as you envision
Don’t wait to protect your family’s future. Contact us today.
At Maple Wills, we understand the importance of Wills and estate planning. Our experienced and compassionate team is here to guide you through process, ensuring you have a legally sound document that captures all your requirements . We will talk you through writing your Will/Trust/LPA in clear cut, unambiguous language so you fully understand your options and make the right choices for you and your loved ones.
We write Wills/Trusts and LPA’s every day, and we will guide you towards choosing the most appropriate will for your circumstances, we are dedicated to making sure your legacy is preserved as you envision.
Maple Wills complies with the strict industry rules and checks required. Alongside professional indemnity insurance, this will ensure you receive the trustworthy professional and confidential service you require. Don’t wait to protect your family’s future. Contact us today.
Anyone aged 18 or over, and who has mental capacity to give their instructions and understand the nature of the documents and the decisions their attorneys can make on their behalf.
Yes, you can have multiple attorneys. It is common to appoint between two and four attorneys, and you have the option to appoint primary and replacement attorneys.
When you appoint more than one attorney it is important to consider if you know your attorneys well and trust them to make decisions on your behalf if you are unable to. It is also important when appointing multiple attorneys to consider whether they will be able to work well together on your behalf.
When you appoint more than one attorney you will need to decide how they can make decisions, whether they can only make joint decisions, or if they are given the flexibility to act together and independently.
Yes, you can do a Lasting Power of Attorney for both Health and Welfare and Property and Finance. We would advise that both are created, as they appoint attorneys to make different decisions, and one cannot be used to make decisions for the other. The Property and Finance Lasting Power of Attorney for example could not be used by your attorneys to make decisions on your health if you were in hospital, and the Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney could not be used by your attorneys to sell your home to release funds for your care.
A Lasting Power of Attorney cannot be used after the death of the ‘donor’ the person who the document is for. However, in a donor’s lifetime there is no expiry date. The benefit of this is that even if the donor becomes mentally incapable of making their own decisions, having created a Lasting Power of Attorney whilst still having capacity, the document still continues to be valid.
You can appoint anyone to be your attorney. The only requirement is that your attorney is over the age of 18. For example, you can appoint your spouse, your children, other family members and friends. You can also appoint Tollers to be your attorney if necessary. Your attorney should be someone who you trust to manage your affairs and who is willing and able to do this as there could be a lot of work involved for them.
LPAs have to be registered with the Office of the Pubic Guardian before they can be used. Once registered, the Health & Welfare LPA can only be used when you do not have the capacity to make decisions for yourself. The Property & Finance LPA can be used as soon as it has been registered, even if you still have capacity. Your attorneys, on your instruction, can use the Property & Finance LPA, whilst you still have capacity to make the decisions but are unable to act on your decisions for whatever reason.
You have to have mental capacity in order to create an LPA. The LPA is then ready to be used in the event that you lose capacity and cannot deal with your own affairs.
It is not possible to change any details on a Lasting Power of Attorney once it has been registered.
However, if the personal details of yourself or any attorney appointed under a Lasting Power of Attorney change because of a change of address or a change of name, the Office of Public Guardian must be notified.
The original Lasting Power of Attorney must not be amended as it may make it invalid.
Sometimes however it becomes clear or circumstances change such that the person you’ve appointed as your attorney is no longer the right choice or is no longer willing or able to act in your interests.
Fortunately, you can revoke the appointment of an attorney or cancel your Lasting Power of Attorney at any time as long as you have the mental capacity to do so.
The original Lasting Power of Attorney together with the relevant Deed of revocation will need to be sent to the Office of Public Guardian. If the whole of the Lasting Power of Attorney is revoked you will need to consider putting in place a new one to ensure you continue to have an attorney appointed to help you deal with your matters going forward.
If there are concerns of abuse of the LPA, these should be reported to the Office of the Public Guardian who has powers to investigate the abuse and make decisions as to whether the LPA will continue.
To avoid abuse of the LPAs, it would be recommended for the person creating them as well as the attorneys appointed to obtain advise from a qualified legal advisor including how the attorneys make decisions, what decisions they can make and set up some limitations/restrictions.
If you don’t have a valid Lasting Power of Attorney or Enduring Power of Attorney, and you lose mental capacity, someone wishing to act on your behalf may need to apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed as your deputy. This can be a lengthy and expensive process, where the Court of Protection will decide whether any person applying to be your deputy will be suitable for the role.
It is possible for an LPA to be challenged if there are reasonable and genuine grounds for doing so. The LPA may be challenged by the person who created the LPA, the attorneys or notified person or a relative or Local Authority.
Yes, whilst your spouse/civil partner may be your next of kin, it does not grant them an automatic right to manage your affairs. Therefore, it is very important to put the LPAs in place.
There are two different types of Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA):
One for finance and property:
This LPA usually relates to dealings in respect of the donor’s house, bank accounts, shares, pensions, paying bills etc. It can remain in effect if the person it relates to loses mental capacity at a later date.
One for health and welfare:
This LPA relates to decisions such as where the donor lives, life-sustaining treatment, medical decisions, medication and social care. This document can only be used once the donor has lost capacity.
If someone owns a business or has an interest in a business they can also make an LPA to appoint a suitable person to make decisions concerning their business interests when they are unavailable or lack mental capacity.
The responsibilities of an Attorney include taking reasonable care when making decisions on behalf of the donor. They must act in accordance with the terms of the Lasting Power of Attorney. They have a duty of care, good faith, confidentiality and above all to act in the best interest of the Donor. They should also keep accounts and ensure that the donor’s money and property are kept separate from their own.
