Making a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)
A Quick Guide
An LPA
-
must be set out in the legally required
format.
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must contain a certificate completed by an
independent person to confirm that you as the Donor, understand the
power and importance of the LPA and that you are not under any
pressure to make it.
-
can contain the names of anyone you as the
Donor want to be notified of any application to register the LPA.
If there is no one to be notified, you must say so and have a
second certificate.
-
became available from 1 October
2007.
Decisions the Attorney(s) can make
Depending on the type of LPA you as a
Donor make and any limitations you include, your Attorney(s) can
make decisions about your:
-
property and financial affairs and/or
-
personal welfare (including giving or refusing
consent to treatment). Your Attorney(s) will only be able to
make health and welfare decisions for you if you lose the capacity
to do this for yourself.
When the instrument comes into operation
Your Attorney(s) cannot act under an LPA
unless it is registered with the Public Guardian.
The LPA can be registered with the Public
Guardian at any time either before you as the Donor lose the mental
capacity to make decisions for yourself, or when your Attorney(s)
have reason to believe that this has happened.
The Attorney(s) you have appointed to
make personal welfare decisions can only use this power once the
LPA has been registered and provided that you cannot make the
required decision for yourself.
The duty of the Attorney
Your Attorney(s) under an LPA have a statutory duty to act in
your best interests.
The duties of your Attorney(s) are also set out in the Mental
Capacity Act Code of Practice and they must be aware of this and
follow the guidance provided by the Code.
The Donor’s ability to make decisions
As the Donor, you can carry on making decisions, provided you
have the capacity to do so. The Attorney(s) can only make personal
welfare decisions that the Donor is incapable of making, or which
they reasonably believe the Donor is incapable of making, at the
time.
Registering the power
Either you as Donor or your Attorney(s) can apply to the Public
Guardian to register your LPA. The application can be made at any
time.
Before applying to register the LPA, whoever is doing this it
must notify the persons named by you as the Donor as being entitled
to receive notification of the application.
The Pubic Guardian will give notice that the application has
been received to
- you as the Donor, and
- the Attorney(s)
Your relatives will not be automatically notified of the
application to register the LPA unless you have named them as being
persons who should be given notice.
As well as your Attorney(s) and the persons you have said should
be notified, you as the Donor can also object to the LPA being
registered.
Revoking (cancelling) the power
As the Donor you can revoke or cancel your LPA as long as you
have the mental capacity to do so. If there is any dispute about
whether your LPA has been cancelled or ended, the Court of
Protection has the authority to make a decision.
If your Attorney is your spouse or civil partner, the
dissolution or annulment of a marriage or a civil partnership will
end their appointment or revoke the power, unless you have
specifically stated in your LPA that this is not to happen.
An LPA for property and financial affairs is revoked if you or
the Attorney(s) are made bankrupt, but bankruptcy does not
terminate and LPA for personal welfare.
The information provided here is only a simple outline and for
more detailed information you should read the Office of Public
Guardian guidance booklet about Lasting Powers of Attorney.
This document/publication/leaflet about ‘Making a LAP (Quick
Guide’ can be made available in a range of community languages,
large print, Braille, on tape, electronic and accessible formats
from the Information Officer (information_officer@bathnes.gov.uk) -
Tel (01225 477983)Minicom (01225
477043) |
