Legal News | 8.04.21

Enduring Powers of Attorney – is it time to register?

If you are a regular reader of our newsletters, you will have seen us highlight the importance of putting in place Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs). LPAs can be used to appoint trusted friends or family to act as your attorneys, so that they can make decisions regarding your health and finances should you become unable to do so for yourself.

Once signed by you (the donor) and your attorneys, your LPAs must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before your chosen attorneys can use them. This step must be taken for both Property and Financial Affairs LPAs and Health and Welfare LPAs.

Prior to the introduction of LPAs in October 2007, if you wanted to safeguard your finances, you might have signed an Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPA). While EPAs can no longer be created, they remain valid and, unlike LPAs, did not need to be registered at the time of creation in order for them to be used by your attorneys.

Importantly, if you as the attorney(s) have reason to believe that the donor has become or is becoming mentally incapable of managing their own affairs then you have to apply for registration of the EPA and as part of this process, various parties, including the donor, must be notified.

If you are an attorney who is appointed under an existing Enduring Power of Attorney and are aware that the donor’s circumstances have changed, now is the time to consider whether the EPA needs to be registered. We can help with the registration process as well as providing general advice regarding EPAs and LPAs. For more information, please get in touch with your usual contact or email us at wealth@wansbroughs.com.