A Power of Attorney is a document which lets one person give to a friend, relative or some other person they trust the power to deal with their affairs and/or finances at a time when they themselves are unable to do so.
The person to whom those powers are given is called called an “Attorney” (note not to be confused with the use of the word in the USA where it means a lawyer. An attorney in England and Wales can be any person that the grantor of the power chooses). The person giving the powers is normally referred to as the “Donor”.
There are two main types of Power of Attorney:
1General Power of Attorney
- usually made for a limited period of time (e.g. if the Donor is out of the country) and for a specific purpose (e.g. signing a document).
2Lasting Power of Attorney
- usually made by a Donor who wants their affairs to be looked after in the event that they are no longer able to do so.
A General Power of Attorney is normally created for a fixed period of time and/or for the purpose of performing a specific task.
It is common for a General Power of Attorney to be made when a Donor is either going to be abroad or is otherwise unavailable to undertake a specific task – for example signing a transfer of land – and the Donor is happy for someone else whom they trust to have have the power to undertake that task and/or sign the document on their behalf.
The General Power of Attorney can be either:
Usually a General Power of Attorney will come to an end at a specific time (for example upon the date on which the Donor returns from abroad) or upon the completion of a specified task. However, it may be expressed to continue until such time as the Donor brings it to an end by means of a Deed of Revocation. A General Power of Attorney (although note not a Lasting Power of Attorney) will be revoked automatically in the event that the Donor ceases to have sufficient mental capacity to be able to conduct his or her own affairs.
Unlike a Lasting Power of Attorney (see below), a General Power of Attorney does not need to be registered.
For more information about General Powers of Attorney go to the yourwill web site section General Powers of Attorney.
A Lasting Power of Attorney allows the Donor to appoint someone whom they trust (the Attorney) to deal with their affairs in the event they are unable to do so at any time in the future because of physical or mental ill-health. Thus, it differs from a General Power of Attorney in that it does not come to an end automatically upon the Donor ceasing to have the mental capacity to conduct his or her own affairs.
Replacing the previous “Enduring Power of Attorney” from 1 October 2007, a Lasting Power of Attorney allows a Donor to authorise the Attorney to look after either their property and financial affairs and/or to make decisions about their health or welfare when they lack the capacity to do so themselves. Note, however, that this latter power differs from that expressed in a Living Will (see the separate section in the yourwill-yourchoice web site section Making a Living Will.
A Lasting Power of Attorney, unlike a General Power of Attorney, must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before it can be used.
For further information about Lasting Powers of Attorney (including how and when to register them and how and when to register an Enduring Power of Attorney made before 1 October 2007) go to the yourwill-yourchoice web site section Lasting Powers of Attorney.
For more information about Lasting Powers of Attorney see the YourWill-YourWay Lasting Powers of Attorney Factsheet or download the factsheet as a pdf file by clicking on the image below
