What Is Power of Attorney?

Power of Attorney is a legal document where one person (the donor) gives another person the right to make decisions on their behalf. If you want someone to act on your behalf in financial or medical decisions, you'll need to give them Power of Attorney over your affairs.

You can only set up a Power of Attorney while you still have the ability to weigh up information and make decisions for yourself, known as 'mental capacity' - so it's worth putting one in place early on.

There Are Three Main Types of Power of Attorney:

• Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) – LPAs allow someone to make decisions for you after you lose your mental capacity or if you don’t want to make your own decisions yourself. LPAs can cover your finances, your personal welfare, or both.

• Ordinary Power of Attorney – covers decisions about your finances while you still have mental capacity.

• Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) – EPAs allow someone to make decisions about your finances for you after you lose your mental capacity or no longer want to make your own decisions. They were replaced by LPAs in 2007, however, EPAs made before 2007 will likely still be valid and we can provide advice on whether this is the case.

By Making a Lasting Power of Attorney You Can:-

• Nominate a person who you trust to look after your affairs and welfare in the future.

• Specify your wishes and what powers your attorneys should have.

• Decide who is told about your Lasting Power of Attorney to allow people to raise concerns now should they wish to do so.

• Reduce the likelihood of conflicts in the future by ensuring that your signature and the signatures of your attorneys are witnessed.

Probate and Administration of Estates

When someone close to you dies, somebody has to deal with their estate.  A person's estate is considered to be made up of the money, property and any possessions they had at the time of their death.  The process of Probate involves collecting any money that is owed, settling any debts due (including outstanding taxes) and dividing the estate amongst the respective beneficiaries.

All assets (including property) in an estate will usually remain frozen, until the Probate Registry gives the authority (via a document know as a Grant of Representation) to the executor nominated in the Will .  If there is  no Will, then there are rules on who is entitled  to act as the “administrator” on behalf of the estate.

If there is a Will, the estate will pass to the people named in the Will. If there is no Will certain rules, known as the intestacy rules, will apply and will specify how the estate is to be divided.

Whether you are an executor, administrator, beneficiary or  next of kin, we can provide practical guidance to help you deal with the administration of someone's estate. We can help you determine the size of an estate for Probate and Inheritance Tax purposes. We can prepare an application for the Grant of Representation on your behalf, and help you lodge the required forms with the relevant organisations to collect monies due to the estate and settle any outstanding debts.

We can arrange the transfer or sale of any shares, and work with conveyancing solicitors  to handle the sale of any property or land owned by the deceased.

We also offer a reduced probate service for simple estates where we will complete the necessary tax return and make an application for a Grant of representation on your behalf. Once we have obtained the Grant, you can then handle the administration of the estate.

Long Term Care Planning

It's hard to imagine not being able to live in your own home, and look after yourself.  Planning at the right time to make sure any care you may need in the future is covered without having to sell your home, is important for some people. Find out more about the rules about paying for a permanent care home place.

Wills

Approximately one third of the adult population has not made a will. Here are just some of the reasons why you should:

• It ensures that your estate goes to who you want it to go to, not who the law guesses you would want it to go to

• It is an opportunity to arrange your affairs so as to minimise the tax payable on your death

• It allows you to pick your executors and guardians for your children

• It speeds up the process of administering your estate after your death

Inheritance Tax Planning

When trying to minimise the inheritance tax payable on your estate by your beneficiaries, there are many different options, depending on the circumstances. Subject to your particular situation, the size of your estate and various other factors, we can provide you with a range of options and their pros and cons.

Trusts

A Trust is a fund which contains assets that are controlled by you and/or a nominated third party for the benefit of a specific individual(s). They are governed by complex legal regulations and separate tax rules. A Trust can be set up at any time during the lifetime of an individual to become operative immediately or following their death. Find out more about what a Trust can do for you.

Guardians

If you have young children, you should consider appointing guardians to take care of them if you die while they are still young. This is usually done whilst making your Will.

Why Choose Us?

We understand people’s concerns about their future health, and wanting to retain control of the decisions affecting their life, whether about finances or welfare. We aim to make the process to grant a Power of Attorney as efficient and straightforward as possible, so you no longer have to worry.

If you would like more advice, please feel free to speak in confidence with our Solicitors in Chadwell Heath Romford, London Borough of Redbridge and Barking and Dagenham by calling 0208 548 9402 or emailing admin@robinsonravani.com.

Contact Us

We can help. Whether you have questions or would like to instruct a solicitor please feel free to speak in confidence to one of our team.

Power of Attorney Services

• Deed of Variation

• Making a Will

• Probate – Estate Administration

• Estate Panning – Business Owners

• Care Home Fees and Planning or the Future

• Declaration of Trust

• Gifting Property – Deed of Gift

• Court of Protection

• Estate Administration

• Lasting Power of Attorney

• Private Client

• Probate

• Trust, Wills and Probate

• Wills, Following Divorce, Separation and Re-Marriage

• Inheritance Tax Planning

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• Will’s, Probate and Trusts

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