DONOR - this is you, the applicant

ATTORNEY - these are the people you are legally appointing to act for you if you can’t.

CERTIFICATE PROVIDER - this person is certifying that you have your mental capacity, you know what you are doing in creating the document and aren’t under pressure from anyone else to complete it.

If they are a friend, colleague, neighbour etc they must have known you more than two years.

Alternatively a professional Certificate Provider can perform this role as they have the relevant professional skills (a charge for this will usually be included in their overall fee)

Well, they come in two forms:

1. LPA for Health and Welfare decisions

This allows for an attorney acting on the donor’s behalf to consent to medical treatments and care decisions.

It allows for the donor to provide instructions and preferences for how they wish their decisions regarding their health and welfare when they lack capacity.

2. LPA for Property and Financial affairs

Similar to the previous form, this one allows for the attorney to manage the donor’s property and finances, though this can be due to the donor being away or having lost capacity

This form too can be guided by instructions and preferences of the donor to help restrict/guide how they wish for their property and finances to be managed when they can’t do it themselves

The Attorney acts on behalf of the Donor, though this is traditionally for when the Donor loses capacity, an LPA can be registered so that the Attorney can act where the Donor may be absent or otherwise indisposed.

Most people believe that if they lost mental capacity, their “next of kin” would be able to manage everything for them, from their healthcare choices to their financial assets, but what they don’t realise is that the concept of a “next of kin” isn’t a legal concept. By that, we mean that it doesn’t have any actual legal meaning and does not grant a hypothetical next of kin any rights to help manage your assets or wellbeing.

No!

To give someone else the power to look after not only your finances but also to look after you and your healthcare wishes, you need to give your ‘attorneys’ the powers to act on your behalf while you still have the ability to give them this power.

If you were to lose capacity, by law you no longer have the means to give this power and your family/friend(s) will have to make an application to the court and go through a process that is far more arduous compared to simply having an LPA in place, known as deputyship. It can be costly, time-consuming and removes any form of choice away from you. Often the courts will choose who is to act on your behalf; should you lack any suitable candidates for the deputyship, the courts could even appoint the local authority instead. All in all, An LPA means you have chosen those who are to be your attorneys as well as your preferences/instructions to help guide them in ensuring your wishes are met.

Nobody can tell the future, so it is worth being prepared just in case; you might never lose capacity, but what if you do?

No!

To give someone else the power to look after not only your finances but also to look after you and your healthcare wishes, you need to give your ‘attorneys’ the powers to act on your behalf while you still have the ability to give them this power.

If you were to lose capacity, by law you no longer have the means to give this power and your family/friend(s) will have to make an application to the court and go through a process that is far more arduous compared to simply having an LPA in place, known as deputyship. It can be costly, time-consuming and removes any form of choice away from you. Often the courts will choose who is to act on your behalf; should you lack any suitable candidates for the deputyship, the courts could even appoint the local authority instead. All in all, An LPA means you have chosen those who are to be your attorneys as well as your preferences/instructions to help guide them in ensuring your wishes are met.

Nobody can tell the future, so it is worth being prepared just in case; you might never lose capacity, but what if you do?