Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPAs) are invaluable documents enabling an elderly or sick person to delegate financial decision-making to a trusted relative or friend. Under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 EPAs are replaced as from April 2007 with new Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs).

EPAs have been around since 1985 and were, at the time, a great improvement on simple Powers of Attorney, which ceased to operate at the onset of mental incapacity, often just when they would have been really useful. But now EPAs are to be replaced by new LPAs. The key features of the changes are:

• There will now be two separate LPAs covering (1) property and financial affairs and (2) personal welfare

• All LPAs will be registered at the Court of Protection at the outset in order to be valid, instead of only when incapacity has intervened

• The person making the LPA will have to ask one of a specified list of people to provide a certificate stating that the person making the LPA is capable of understanding what he is doing.

We believe LPAs will be beset with problems and will prove much more expensive to create than EPAs. We would therefore strongly advise all those who do not currently have an EPA to create one before next April.

Peter Hopkins is a Partner in Mercers’ specialist Private Client Department which comprises 7 Solicitors and 1 Trust Manager, covering a wide range of Private Client work including Wills, Probate, EPAs, Tax advice and Trust Management.

If you would like advice please contact him, or any member of the department, on 01491 572138.