FAQs

1. What is the process of making Lasting Powers of Attorney?

   You will have an initial telephone, face to face or Zoom appointment with one of our lawyers, who will discuss your circumstances and your requirements for your Lasting Powers of Attorney.

   Following the initial meeting, your lawyer will then prepare draft Lasting Powers of Attorney for your approval, and will discuss the draft Lasting Powers of Attorney with you to ensure you understand the contents.

   Once the Lasting Powers of Attorney have been approved, your lawyer will then arrange to meet you to sign your Lasting Powers of Attorney or arrange for the Lasting Powers of Attorney to be sent to you to be signed at home, along with instructions on how to correctly execute the documents.

   Your lawyer will then arrange for your attorneys to sign their relevant pages of your Lasting Powers of Attorney.

   Once the Lasting Powers of Attorney have been checked to ensure that they have been signed and completed correctly, they will then be submitted to the Office of the Public Guardian for registration.

   The Office of the Public Guardian will then return the registered Lasting Powers of Attorney to your lawyer, who will then arrange to send you certified copies and place the originals in our storage facility.

2. What happens if I lose capacity without making Lasting Powers of Attorney?

   If you lose capacity without having Lasting Powers of Attorney in place, this can cause many problems for your loved ones. Decisions relating to your health and welfare will be decided by medical professionals, which may be against the wishes of your loved ones. Your loved ones will also be unable to access your bank accounts and sell your property if funds need to be raised to pay for your care.

   Your loved ones may need to apply to The Court of Protection for a deputyship order to enable them to obtain the authority to make decisions relating to your health and welfare and property and financial affairs. Deputyship applications can be very costly and time-consuming and once appointed, are annually monitored by the Court of Protection.

3. What do I need to think about before making Lasting Powers of Attorney?

   We recommend considering who you trust to appoint as your attorneys in advance of your meeting. You should appoint people who you trust to act in your best interests should you be unable to make your own decisions.

   You should also consider for the Lasting Power of Attorney for health and welfare whether you wish to provide your attorneys with any guidance on decisions they may need to make on your behalf.

4. I’m acting as an attorney and I am having a disagreement with the other attorneys, what can I do??

   We understand this is a really difficult situation, as all of the attorneys can believe they are acting in the best interests of their loved one.

   We would suggest meeting with all the attorneys to try and come to a resolution, however, if this is unsuccessful, you can instruct a lawyer to attend a meeting with all of the attorneys to help mitigate the conflict and help the attorneys all come to an agreement.

   If you are concerned about any fraudulent behavior you can get in touch with The Office of the Public Guardian directly, and this link should provide you with more information: https://www.gov.uk/report-concern-about-attorney-deputy-guardian
   If you would like assistance dealing with an attorney who you believe is acting wrongfully, please do get in touch and we can discuss this with you.

5. Can my attorney’s use the Lasting Power of Attorney before I lose capacity?

   Your attorneys cannot use your health and welfare Lasting Power of Attorney unless you have lost capacity. However, for the property and financial affairs Lasting Power of Attorney, you have the option when creating the document to either give your attorneys the power to act as soon as it is registered, regardless of whether or not you have lost capacity, or only when you have lost capacity.