Before reading on, it may help to note that; A Donor - is the person granting the power to another to enable them to act on their behalf if they are unable to act for them selves. Attorneys - are the people or an approved body entrusted to act on behalf of the donor. (It is acceptable to have just one attorney, however it is important to note that if property may have to be managed, then a minimum of two attorneys should be appointed). 

You know that at sometime your Will is going to be needed, but what happens if in the interim you lose the ability to manage our own affairs? Who will or more crucially, who can manage your affairs if you can't?  The answer, and it may surprise you, is... NO ONE CAN!

 
Nothing which is in your sole name or joint names requiring both signatories can be managed without you. Not your property, bank accounts, savings or current; shares, investments, credit cards, loans, even services, gas, electric, water etc., if they are in your sole name only you can manage them, not your parents, children or your spouse.      
                                                                                                                                            Can you imagine just what would happen if these matters went un-serviced??

Whilst most of us would associate such loss of capacity with the process of aging, more often than one cares to acknowledge, such circumstances do occur as result of incapacitation by accident or illness.

So, how can one avoid this potentially difficult and distressing scenario? Organise a Lasting Power of Attorney before the need for one arises. Quite simply, it's an insurance against the predicaments which would befall you and your family if no such document were available. 

The Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) - which superseded the Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) as of October 1st 2007 allows the donor (you) to empower a person or persons of your choosing to act as if they are you if or when you become incapable of managing your own affairs, monetary and/or welfare.  

Why bother? Well, if you need to manage the monetary affairs of someone who has lost their mental capacity and doesn't have an LPA, you cannot act as their Attorney, it's too late. However, you can apply through the Court of Protection (COP) for a similar status and should they decide you are fit and proper, they will grant you what is known as receiver status. However, in every case they will appoint a joint receiver, normally a firm of accountants who usually deal with bankruptcies and the like. The court will also lay down stringent rules by which you must abide when dealing with the individual's affairs. These will include keeping accounts of every penny spent, and they mean EVERY penny. The accounts can be called for auditing at anytime by your joint receiver, an exercise they will charge for accordingly, as they will also charge if there is a particular monetary event which may be outside of the norm. You may also be required to take out an insurance bond for the value of the estate being managed.

Really, this is not a route you should go down if at all possible, it's extremely costly, court proceedings alone can easily get into four figures and as well as being costly it's also intrusive, stressful, time consuming but most of all, avoidable.         

NB. Unlike its predecessor, an LPA must be registered with the COP if it is to be used in any situation even if the donor retains mental capacity.  

As ever, if you would like more information on the above we will be happy to forward same, just drop us a line via our contact page with your request or if you prefer, call us on our free-phone number.