Frequently Asked Questions About Power of Attorney

POA stands for power of attorney, which is a legal document where you choose a trusted individual or individuals to make health and financial decisions on your behalf when you are no longer able to do so. Learn more.

It is recommended that you seek advice from a solicitor when considering setting up a power of attorney. They will advise the most suitable type of POA, ensure the document reflects your wishes and guide you on the legal tasks to ensure it is valid.

If an individual loses capacity to make decisions, but doesn’t have a POA, then the Court of Protection can appoint a deputy, who will make decisions regarding health and financial matters.

Alternatively, the individual’s loved ones can apply to be the power of attorney, but this can be a timely and expensive process.

The individual(s) you select to make decisions on your behalf through your power of attorney legal document is referred to as the ‘attorney(s)’. Learn more.

The person who is setting up a power of attorney is referred to as the ‘donor’ and the person they choose to make decisions on their behalf if they no longer have the mental capacity is the ‘attorney’. Learn more.

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A solicitor is a qualified lawyer who provides legal advice. Whereas an attorney doesn’t need legal qualifications. Instead, they are someone a ‘donor’ chooses to have power of attorney to make decisions on their behalf when they no longer have capacity to do so.

Yes, you can choose family members to be your power of attorneys. You can choose anyone you trust, such as family, friends or professionals.

If the individual still has mental capacity, then they can sign legal documents. However, if they do not understand purpose of the document and the consequences, then they will need someone to make the decision on their behalf, such as a power of attorney or a Court of Protection deputyship.

If you assign an individual to be your power of attorney, they cannot change your will. Even if they have the authority to make decisions regarding your financial matters.

After granting an individual or individuals power of attorney, you as the ‘donor’ has the right to remove them as your power of attorney if you still have the mental capacity to do so. To revoke power or attorney, you need to provide written notice to the attorney(s) and the Office of the Public Guardian.

EPA stands for enduring power of attorney, and it is a legal document which allows you to appoint a trusted individual as an attorney to manage your property and financial matters, even if you later lose mental capacity. This is only valid if the documents were signed prior to 1^st October 2007 because EPA was replaced by lasting power of attorney. Learn more.

There is no limit on how many power of attorneys you can have, but you need to decide how they will make decisions. You can decide between ‘jointly’ and ‘severally’, which means you are giving permission for your attorneys to make decisions by themselves or together.

Yes, your solicitor can act as your attorney. When choosing attorneys, they can be anyone you trust, such as family, friends or professional, but they need to be 18 years or older.

When setting up power of attorney, a certificate provider is an independent person who confirms the donor (person creating the power of attorney) understands the document and is doing it under their free will.

Yes, a certificate provider can act as a witness when creating lasting power of attorney.

Yes, you can set up power of attorney by yourself. You need to fill in the forms either online or via post and register the forms with the Office of the Public Guardian for it to be valid. There is a registration fee of £82.*

* Correct as of March 2025.

Yes, a family member can witness your lasting power of attorney if they are not one of your chosen attorney or a replacement attorney and they must be 18 years or older.

To make your power of attorney valid, you as the donor needs to sign the document, along with the attorney(s), certificate provider and a witness.

Anyone you trust, over the age of 18 years can be an attorney, whether this be family, friends or a professional such as your solicitor.