PROPERTY
life
Do we need Power
of Attorney
Contact: Mark or Terence Willey
Tel: (01983) 611888 or 875859
Website: www.terencewilley.co.uk
I have always considered
that there are two priority
appointments that we should
all consider during our
lifetime; one being that of an
Executor to your Will, who
can take care of your funeral
arrangements and administer
your estate pursuant to your
express wishes, and the other
being the appointment of an
Attorney to deal with assisting
you during your lifetime in a
time of need.
Since the 1st October last
there has been a complete
statutory reform of the
Enduring Power of Attorney
legislation, which has stood
since 1986, in so far as
the Government have now
introduced what is known as
a Lasting Power of Attorney.
The benefits of the new
form allow you to appoint
more than one Attorney
to undertake various roles,
such as personal, finance,
welfare, and health care. The
difference between the earlier
legislation and now is that
the new Power of Attorney
document requires registration
in the Court of Protection in
the first instance before it can
be used. The benefit of having
an Attorney document in place
is to secure the piece of mind
that should you fall seriously
ill, or be incapacitated in
any way, or temporarily
indisposed, your Attorney may
then act on your behalf and
with legal authority, following
registration with the Court of
Protection.
Over the years very many
clients have attended my
Practice in the capacity of a
friend or relative of someone
who required their assistance
Terence Willey
in a time of both physical
and mental disability and
where no Attorney document
was in place. Frustrations
then arise where Authorities,
quite naturally, will not
offer co-operation unless a
formal Attorney document
can be produced. Where a
‘capacity’ issue has arisen
this has effectively meant that
an application was necessary
to the Court of Protection
for what was known as a
Receivership Order. The
Court would then consider an
application from an individual
to be appointed by the Court
as the Receiver for the person
they wish to assist (now to be
known as a Deputyship Order).
In both the former and present
legislation regular monitoring
and accountability respectively
by, and to the Court, is
necessary. This can prove
costly and time consuming,
and could be avoided by having
a Power of Attorney document
in place.
There are also obvious
benefits to the elderly
generally, and those in
Residential Care Homes, in
having a trusted and appointed
Attorney or Attorneys in
place under a Lasting Power
of Attorney document. The
time taken to carefully discuss
and consider suc