Power of Attorney
A power of attorney (POA) or letter of Attorney in common law systems or mandate in civil law systems is an authorization to act on someone else's behalf in a legal or business matter. The person authorizing the other to act is the principal, granter or donor (of the power), and the one authorized to act is the agent, the attorney-in-fact, or in many Common Law jurisdictions, simply the attorney.
In English law, anyone with capacity can grant a Power of Attorney. These can be general (i.e. to do anything which can legally be done by an attorney), or relate to a specific act (eg. to sell freehold property).
A normal Power of Attorney however ceases to have effect if the donor loses capacity. If it is the donor's intention for the Power to continue after they have lost capacity, then a "Lasting Power of Attorney" (LPA) should be granted. These came into being in 1 October 2007, and replaced the simpler "Enduring Powers of Attorney" (EPA's) which had previously been used. LPA's were introduced by the government in order to reduce the potential for abuse that was a problem with the EPA system, and also to allow donors to grant attorneys the power to look after their welfare and not just their finances, which had not been possible under the EPA regime.
The new LPA regime is therefore a lot more complicated and expensive than the old EPA regime, with the average LPA costing in the region of £800 compared to the £100 charge for EPA's. However, it is perfectly possible to complete an LPA without consulting a solicitor; this dramatically reduces the overall cost than if a solicitor is appointed to complete the whole or any part of the process. A GP or social worker (for example) is able to be the Certificate Provider and they may not charge for this, or charge minimally. Having the legalities & implications explained by a trusted GP or other professional already known to the donor is also likely to be preferable.
Enduring Power of Attorney was replaced with Lasting Powers of attorney in October 2007.
