Creating and registering Lasting and Enduring Powers of Attorney is an integral part of estate management so that you can appoint someone to assist you with your property and finances or your health and welfare. An LPA is particularly useful to ensure that your affairs can continue to be managed in circumstances where you have lost the physical or mental capacity to do this yourself or to make decisions about your welfare when you are unable to: for example, should you have an accident.
With skill and experience, our private client team are here to help you prepare for the future, whatever it may bring. We can advise you on how to set up the LPA that best suits you and can visit you if you cannot make it to the office.
Please read our helpful advice guide for more information on Lasting Powers of Attorney.
For legal advice from our experienced private client team, please get in touch with us on 01420 82881, email us at enquiries@bookersandbolton.co.uk or make an online enquiry here.
There are two different types of LPA:
- Property and Financial Affairs LPA – which allows your Attorney to make decisions on your behalf about your property and financial affairs.
- Health and Welfare LPA – which allows your Attorney to make decisions on your behalf about your health and personal welfare but only if you lack the capacity to make the specific decision yourself.
Lasting Powers of Attorney must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before they can be used, and you can place restrictions or conditions on the decisions your Attorney can make on your behalf.
It is a common assumption that family members have these rights automatically, but legally they do not without one of these documents in place. Another common misconception is that you don’t need one when you are young. However, Lasting Powers of Attorney are not just for the elderly – mental and physical incapacity can hit at any time, so we recommend implementing these essential legal documents to ease the potential burden on loved ones.
Both types of LPAs include inbuilt safeguards designed to protect you. As well as the requirement to register an LPA before it can be used, you can optionally notify at least one person of your intention to register an LPA, and they can object to the registration if they believe that you lack the mental capacity to understand the nature of the document or that you are being pressured into making it.
At Bookers & Bolton, our Lasting Powers of Attorney lawyers in Alton, Hampshire, can advise and guide you practically and compassionately. We can help by drawing up Lasting Powers of Attorneys on your behalf or completing the entire registration process for you.
Although various online options offer DIY services, an LPA must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) to be legally effective. However, seeking specialist legal advice is advisable to avoid making errors of judgment in drafting the forms, which can make life unintentionally difficult for your attorneys in the future or even cause the OPG to reject it.
We have been in our current offices at 6 High Street in Alton since 1956, and the history of Bookers & Bolton dates back to 1893, so you can rely on us to be there for you and your family in the future. There is security in our history, and we act for many clients whose grandparents were advised by us. We have built a reputation for quality and reliability in Hampshire and the South and are committed to maintaining and building on that reputation.
If you would like further information or advice regarding our lasting power of attorney services, please get in touch with us on 01420 82881, email us at enquiries@bookersandbolton.co.uk or make an online enquiry here.
We can also help you with Wills, Probate, Family Law, Conveyancing and Business Law Services.
