Power of
Attorney
Solicitors

Setting up a Power of Attorney provides assurance that a trusted appointee will make decisions on your behalf in the event of physical or mental incapacity. Thursfields can help you to determine the right course of action to safeguard your best interests.

Power of Attorney solicitors

Our Power of Attorney Services

There are a number of factors to consider when setting up a Lasting Power of Attorney, so it’s important to take the right approach for you. We specialise in the following areas:

  • Preparation of lasting powers of attorney
  • Registration of lasting and enduring powers of attorney
  • General powers of attorney
  • Preparation and advice about advanced decisions (living wills)
  • Advising on capacity issues
  • Planning for care fees

Whatever your personal circumstances, Thursfields can guide you to protect your best interests. 

Want to Know More About Our Power of Attorney Services?

Powers of Attorney Legal Advice

Setting up a power of attorney requires careful planning and an understanding of the implications for your future. Depending on your circumstances, there are different forms of power of attorney for you to consider. The type you choose can have long-term consequences, so it’s essential that you have reliable legal advice to work out the best approach for you.

Thursfields' power of attorney services are designed to simplify the process and make it easier for you to reach an informed decision. We can advise on the key differences between an ordinary power of attorney (OPA), a lasting power of attorney (LPA) and an enduring power of attorney (EPA).

Our specialist team will offer clear, practical advice that simplifies your situation and makes your choices clear to help safeguard control of your estate.

Meet Our

Power of Attorney Lawyers

If you’re looking for legal advice about power of attorney that is tailored to your needs, Thursfields’ experienced team is here to help.

Key Contact

Terry Cooper

Terry Cooper TEP

Director, Head of Private Client

Terry leads Thursfields’ Private Client team and has a vast amount of expertise with tax and trust planning. He regularly advises on matters such as wills, the creation or restructuring of trusts, lifetime gifts and other planning to minimise inheritance tax or other tax liabilities (including insurance-based solutions), and death-in-service payments.

Terry has acted for entrepreneurs and business owners, wealthy families, and others who need wills or tax advice. As a result, he is always happy to work in collaboration with a client’s existing financial advisers or accountants.

Sophie Donovan Square

Sophie Donovan

Director, Head of Estate Administration

Sophie is an experienced Solicitor specialising in all areas of Private Client Law, advising clients with Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorney and Administering Estates. Sophie’s focus is client led, offering reassurance in complex matters and working collaboratively with the client to achieve an outcome in an efficient and supportive manner to meet the client’s needs.

Sophie is an Affiliate Member of the Society of Trusts and Estates Practitioner.

 

GET IN TOUCH

Want more information about our power of attorney services? Get in touch with one of our experienced solicitors today.

Tailored

Power of Attorney Services

Our solicitors will draw upon their extensive experience of preparing and registering Lasting Powers of Attorneys to recommend the most suitable approach for you. As well as helping you to choose a type of LPA and suitable appointee, we’ll also be able to help if an existing LPA is contested or you have specific requests to be included in a living will.

In general, we advise on two main types of LPA. Health and welfare allows your appointee to make decisions about ongoing medical care and other care arrangements (such as care homes). Alternatively, property and finance gives your appointed attorney control over properties, pension schemes, and bills, etc.

Failing to designate a power of attorney while capable could compel friends and family members to pursue the stressful alternative of applying to the Court of Protection on your behalf. Thursfields can simplify your situation and provide peace of mind about the future for you and your loved ones.

Taking Care of Business

If you have a business to consider we can also assist with succession planning. Ensuring your assets are protected as well as guiding you through the options for preparing your business for sale, merger, or management buyout.

Frequently Asked Questions

A power of attorney is a legal document that grants an appointee the legal right to make important decisions on your behalf in the event of illness, mental incapacity or long-term residence in another country. The role of the appointee commonly includes factors like:

  • Managing bank accounts
  • Buying and selling property
  • Claiming welfare
  • Personal care and health care
  • Relocation

Lasting power of attorney (LPA) is most common, giving the appointee control over finances in the long-term. Within this, the two main forms of power of attorney are financial and medical. Financial gives the appointee control over bank accounts and savings, so can be used to pay bills etc. Medical cedes control over factors like care arrangements and medical costs.

Legally, you are not required to have a power of attorney. However, if you want someone to make important decisions on your behalf in the event of incapacity, appointing an LPA while being clinically capable is important. Without an LPA, there is no guarantee that your next of kin would automatically inherit legal control over your affairs.

A living will is a detailed, legally-binding, statement that makes clear a person’s wishes regarding medical treatment in the event of terminal illness or incapacity. It’s also known as an advance order and can be used to refuse certain types of clinical care. A living will could be used to decline CPR, life support and, in the event of serious infection, life-saving antibiotics. Any ailments or illnesses not specified in a living will would be treated as per the clinician’s discretion.

Contact Our

Team

Whether you’re appointing a power of attorney, preparing a will, or considering care fees, our solicitors are ready to help.

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