What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?

A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) gives another individual the legal authority to look after specific aspects of your financial affairs or health and welfare should you lose the capacity to do so. People presume that they may need to make an LPA only if they are getting old and are worried about dementia but LPA's are not just for the elderly; younger people may become incapacitated through accident or illness.  Nobody knows what is round the corner and it is incredibly important to plan what would happen to you should you ever lose mental capacity.

There are two types of Lasting Powers of Attorney:

Property and Financial LPA

Health and Welfare LPA

It is important to remember that both types of LPA are very powerful legal documents because of the wide-ranging decisions that can be made on your behalf by your attorney.  They contain a number of safeguards to protect the person making them (The Donor) and are complicated documents that you need to consider very carefully.

Because of this it is recommended that you get legal advice before setting up an LPA, as there is a danger of making errors of judgement in drafting the form that can make life unintentionally difficult for your attorneys in the future, or which can cause the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) to reject the LPA.

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