LEGAL
The benefits of having a lasting power of attorney By David Benest, managing partner at BCR Law LLP
‘I
must get around to it…’ Words we all say to ourselves about so many things. Everyday life has a habit, however, of making us push off the things we should do. Of course, we know we should make a will, but even fewer of us think about making a lasting power of attorney (LPA) or have even heard of the notion of doing so. Dementia is an insidious disease which robs many of their faculties before time renders them unable to deal with their financial and other affairs.
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The lack of mental capacity that it engenders can paralyse the subject’s financial life as well as cruelly impacting them in a medical sense, adding to the heartache for family members, which often accompanies a loved one’s illness. Many assume that family members will readily be able to deal with financial affairs and that the ‘next of kin’ can step in. That is wrong.
Life can change in a split second, whether that be by reason of a sporting injury, an accident at work or the sudden onset of an unexpected illness. Again, without forward planning, the lack of capacity to deal with one’s finances and health decisions can have a significant impact on self and others.
It is not just age-related illness and infirmity, of course, which can rob a person of capacity; accidents do happen.
An LPA is a legal document registered with the Court that gives another individual the legal authority to look after specific aspects of someone’s financial affairs or health and welfare, should they lose capacity.
What is an LPA?
