What is Power of Attorney?
A Power of Attorney enables you to give a trusted person the legal authority to make decisions on your behalf if you lose the ability to make them yourself, or if you do not want to make them yourself.
Williams Hortor advises clients in Ware, Hertford, Hoddesdon, Bishop’s Stortford, Harlow Town, Welwyn Garden City, and Stevenage on Powers of Attorney.
If you are going into hospital and need help with everyday financial tasks such as paying your bills, or you are diagnosed with a long-term condition such as dementia, appointing a Power of Attorney can help you plan ahead in case you lose the mental capacity to make your own decisions in the future.
The three different types of Power of Attorney
1. Ordinary Power of Attorney
2. Enduring Power of Attorney
3. Lasting Power of Attorney
Ordinary Power of Attorney
An Ordinary Power of Attorney is for financial decisions only and is only valid while you still have mental capacity. It is useful if you need someone to look after your finances temporarily.
Enduring Power of Attorney
This is only for financial decisions and applies only if you created one before 1 October 2007. If you created an Enduring Power of Attorney before this date it is still valid but no new one can be created since a Lasting Power of Attorney is now used instead (see below).
Lasting Power of Attorney
There are two types of Lasting Power of Attorney. One is for making financial decisions and another is for health and care decisions.
A Lasting Power of Attorney is not necessarily permanent and can be revoked.
The services that we provide:
- Drafting a simple Power of Attorney (Office of the Public Guardian not required)
- Completing, submitting and registering Lasting Power of Attorney/LPF1 form for financial decisions with Office of the Public Guardian
