Do you need a Lasting Power of Attorney instead of an Enduring Power of Attorney?

 Do you need a Lasting Power of Attorney instead of an Enduring Power of Attorney? 

 

If you have created an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) before 1st October 2007, then it is still valid.

 Registration is possible as long as the terms of the originally drafted EPA are correct, i.e you cannot add new people or take people off.

There are more benefits to having an LPA in place than an EPA which will be explained in more detail here.

An Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) is a document that gives someone the legal responsibility to be an attorney so that they are able to manage property and financial possessions on behalf of a donor. 

An attorney is someone who makes decisions on your behalf when you are not able to. You are known as the “donor” in this situation. 

A Lasting Power of Attorney gives someone the legal authority to make decisions on your behalf relating to property, finances, and health and welfare matters. 

Essentially an EPA and an LPA are very similar, but a new EPA can no longer be created anymore as of October 2007. EPAs have since been replaced by LPAs.

The main difference between EPAs and LPAs is that EPAs are limited to dealing with property and financial decisions, whereas LPAs can be used for both property and health and welfare. Also, the LPA was introduced for improved and greater protection for the individual (donor) and the attorney. 

 

An already-existent EPA does not necessarily need to be replaced by an LPA if it is serving its purpose. However, an EPA can be replaced by an LPA if the individual wants further protection and security. 

One of the biggest changes in the law is that LPAs allow you to appoint replacement attorneys if needed. This may be beneficial if something happens to one attorney and they are unable to carry out their responsibilities. 

An LPA allows someone to appoint an attorney at any time in case they lose the capacity to make their own decisions. Usually, LPAs are put in place when the donor has the ability to decide who they want to make decisions on their behalf, giving them more autonomy. On the other hand, you could only register an EPA when the donor was beginning to lose mental capacity. 

In addition, when setting up an LPA, an individual must sign a document confirming that they understand the terms and that they are not under any pressure or undue influence when passing on responsibility to an attorney, which gives them more security and protection.

Finally, an LPA can cover both health and welfare and property and finances unlike the EPA which only covers property and financial decisions. This means that the donor has more widespread protection in the case that they lose the capacity to make their own decisions.