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None of us knows what the future holds. An accident, illness, or simply getting older could mean you’re no longer able to make decisions for yourself. A Lasting Power of Attorney lets you choose who you trust to look after your affairs if that ever happens. It’s one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself and your family.
Get a free, no-obligation chat with our wills and probate team, call us on 02920 829 100 or use our Contact us form.
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A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document that lets you appoint someone you trust to make decisions on your behalf if you’re ever unable to make them yourself. This could happen because of an accident, a sudden illness, or a condition like dementia.
Without an LPA, your family can’t simply step in and manage your finances or make decisions about your care, even if they’re your spouse, children, or closest relatives. Instead, they’d need to apply to the Court of Protection to become your deputy, a process that’s expensive, time-consuming, and stressful at an already difficult time.
The key thing to understand is that you can only make an LPA while you still have mental capacity to do so. Once you’ve lost that capacity, it’s too late. That’s why putting an LPA in place now, while you’re fit and healthy, is so important.
Our LPA solicitors help individuals and families across Wales and the UK set up Lasting Powers of Attorney that reflect their wishes and protect their interests. We’ll explain everything clearly, help you choose the right attorneys, and make sure your LPA is properly drafted and registered.
Ready for a free, no-obligation chat? Contact us today on 02920 829 100 or use our Contact us form.
A Lasting Power of Attorney is a legal document that gives someone else the authority to make decisions on your behalf. The person making the LPA is called the “donor,” and the people appointed to make decisions are called “attorneys.”
There are two types of LPA, and they cover different areas of your life:
This type of LPA gives your attorney the power to manage your money and property. This includes things like:
A Property and Financial Affairs LPA can be used as soon as it’s registered, even while you still have capacity (with your consent). This can be helpful if you want someone to manage day-to-day finances for you.
This type of LPA gives your attorney the power to make decisions about your personal welfare and medical treatment. This includes things like:
A Health and Welfare LPA can only be used when you lack mental capacity to make decisions yourself.
We handle the entire process of creating and registering your LPA. This includes an initial meeting to understand your circumstances and wishes, drafting the LPA documents, arranging for them to be signed and witnessed correctly, and submitting the application to the Office of the Public Guardian for registration.
Many couples choose to set up LPAs at the same time, appointing each other as their primary attorneys. This makes practical sense and is often more cost-effective. We can prepare both types of LPA for both partners in one straightforward process.
If you already have an LPA in place, it’s worth reviewing it periodically to make sure it still reflects your wishes. Circumstances change: people move, relationships evolve, and your chosen attorneys might no longer be the right people for the role. We can review your existing LPA and advise whether any changes are needed.
An LPA must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before it can be used. We handle the registration process for you, making sure everything is completed correctly to avoid delays or rejections.
Sometimes disagreements arise about how an LPA is being used, whether it was validly created, or whether an attorney is acting in the donor’s best interests. Our team can advise on LPA disputes and, where necessary, make applications to the Court of Protection.
Many people assume LPAs are only for the elderly, but that’s a mistake. Accidents and sudden illnesses can happen at any age. A young person in a serious car accident or someone who has a stroke in their forties needs the same protection as an 80-year-old with dementia.
Without an LPA, your family has no right to manage your affairs, even if you’re married or in a civil partnership. Banks won’t let them access your accounts. They can’t sell your house to pay for care. They can’t make decisions about your medical treatment. They’re stuck.
If you lose capacity without an LPA, someone will need to apply to the Court of Protection to become your deputy. This involves:
All of this happens while your family is dealing with the emotional stress of your illness or incapacity. An LPA set up in advance avoids all of this.
With an LPA, you decide who looks after your interests. Without one, the court might appoint someone you wouldn’t have chosen, possibly even a professional deputy you’ve never met.
Knowing that trusted people are in place to look after your affairs if needed gives you peace of mind. Your family will know exactly what to do and won’t face bureaucratic obstacles at an already difficult time.
We’ll have a conversation to understand your situation, your wishes, and who you’d like to appoint as your attorneys. We’ll explain how LPAs work and answer any questions you have.
You can appoint one attorney or several, including replacement attorneys if those appointed can no longer act. If you appoint more than one, you’ll need to decide whether they must act together (jointly) on all decisions, or whether they can act separately (jointly and severally). We’ll help you think through the pros and cons of each approach.
We prepare your LPA documents, including any specific instructions or restrictions you want to include. You might want to specify that certain assets must be preserved, or that particular people should be consulted before decisions are made.
LPAs must be signed in a specific order and witnessed correctly. We’ll arrange for this to happen and make sure everything is done properly so your LPA won’t be rejected.
Someone needs to certify that you understand the LPA and aren’t being pressured into making it. This is usually a professional like a solicitor (we can do this), or someone who has known you for at least two years.
We submit your LPA to the Office of the Public Guardian for registration. This currently takes around 20 weeks, though times can vary. Once registered, your LPA is ready to use when needed.
We believe in being upfront about costs. Nobody wants a surprise bill, especially for something as important as protecting their future.
Our fees include the initial consultation, drafting the documents, arranging signing and witnessing, acting as certificate provider, and submitting the registration application.
The Office of the Public Guardian charges £92 per LPA for registration. This is payable on top of our fees. If you’re on certain means-tested benefits, you may qualify for a reduced fee or exemption.
You can create an LPA yourself using the government’s online forms, but we’d strongly recommend using a solicitor. Here’s why:
Choosing a law firm is a big decision. You want experts who actually get you and your organisation, respond when you need them, and give you straight answers. That’s us. We’re one of Wales’ leading commercial law firms, and we do things a little differently.
You won’t be passed through layers of gatekeepers here. When you call, you’ll speak to the solicitor handling your matter. You’ll have their direct contact details and a genuine working relationship. For something as personal as setting up an LPA, that direct relationship really matters.
We don’t work in silos. Our team shares knowledge across departments, jumps in on each other’s projects, and stays close to every case. So if your usual contact is unavailable, someone else can step in quickly, without a formal handover and without missing a beat.
Devolved decision-making and flexible working hours mean we can move at pace. You’ll get faster responses, even outside regular office hours. If you need an LPA set up quickly because of a developing health situation, we can prioritise your case.
Getting to know our clients properly matters to us. Face-to-face meetings, regular catch-ups, and genuine personal service. Many of our clients come back to us for their wills, estate planning, and other personal legal matters because they know and trust us.
You’ll always get the full picture from us. We’ll explain your options clearly, including things you might not have considered, so you can make informed decisions. No jargon, no hedging. Just practical guidance you can rely on.
We’re the leading commercial law firm with offices in South and North Wales offering Welsh language legal services at every level, from trainees right through to partners. This isn’t an add-on or a tick-box exercise. It’s part of who we are. If you need a solicitor who can work fluently in Welsh, or you’d simply prefer to discuss personal matters in your first language, you’ll find that expertise right across our team.
We’ll keep you informed throughout the process and let you know when your LPA has been registered. If there are any delays or issues, you’ll hear about them from us straight away.
A Lasting Power of Attorney is a legal document that lets you appoint one or more people to make decisions on your behalf if you become unable to make them yourself. There are two types: one for property and financial affairs (like managing your bank accounts and paying bills), and one for health and welfare (like decisions about your care and medical treatment). You can make one or both, depending on your needs.
A will deals with what happens to your assets after you die. An LPA deals with what happens while you’re still alive but unable to make decisions for yourself. They serve completely different purposes, and you really need both. Having a will doesn’t help your family if you’re incapacitated but still living.
You can appoint anyone over 18 who has mental capacity and isn’t bankrupt (for a Property and Financial Affairs LPA). Most people choose family members, close friends, or sometimes professionals like solicitors. You can appoint multiple attorneys if you want. The most important thing is that you trust them completely to act in your best interests.
Yes. You can appoint as many attorneys as you like. If you appoint more than one, you need to decide whether they must act together on all decisions, or whether they can act independently. We’ll help you think through which approach works best for your situation and relationships.
For a Property and Financial Affairs LPA, your attorneys can, if you choose, act as soon as the LPA is registered (with your consent while you still have capacity). For a Health and Welfare LPA, your attorneys can only act once you’ve lost the capacity to make decisions yourself.
Our fees for setting up an LPA start from £350 + VAT. There’s also a £92 registration fee payable to the Office of the Public Guardian for each LPA. We’ll give you a clear quote before starting any work. If you’re on certain means-tested benefits, you may qualify for a reduced registration fee.
We can usually prepare your LPA documents within a week or two of our initial meeting. The registration process with the Office of the Public Guardian currently takes around 20 weeks, though this can vary. Once registered, your LPA is ready to use when needed.
Possibly, but it depends on the stage of your condition. To make an LPA, you must have the mental capacity to understand what you’re doing. People with early-stage dementia or mild cognitive impairment can often still make a valid LPA. We assess capacity carefully as part of the process, and if there’s any doubt, we may recommend getting a medical opinion.
If you lose mental capacity without an LPA in place, someone will need to apply to the Court of Protection to become your deputy. This is expensive (typically costing £2,500+ in legal fees plus court fees), time-consuming (often taking several months), and involves ongoing supervision by the court. It’s far better to set up an LPA while you can.
Yes, as long as you still have mental capacity. You can revoke an existing LPA at any time by notifying the Office of the Public Guardian and your attorneys. If you want to change who your attorneys are, you’ll need to revoke the old LPA and create a new one.
Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPAs) were replaced by Lasting Powers of Attorney in 2007. If you have an EPA that was made before October 2007 and was properly signed, it may still be valid for property and financial matters. However, EPAs don’t cover health and welfare decisions. We can check whether your old EPA is still valid and advise whether you need an LPA as well.
The certificate provider confirms that you understand the LPA and aren’t being pressured into making it. This can be a professional (like a solicitor, doctor, or social worker) or someone who has known you personally for at least two years and isn’t a family member. We can act as certificate provider as part of our service.
9 Cathedral Road, Cardiff, CF11 9HA
Unit F12, InTec, Ffordd y Parc, Parc Menai, Bangor, LL57 4FG
We’re happy to meet clients at either office, arrange home visits where appropriate (particularly for elderly or less mobile clients), or work by video call if that’s more convenient for you.
Setting up a Lasting Power of Attorney is one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself and your family. It gives you control over who makes decisions for you if you’re ever unable to make them yourself, and it saves your loved ones from a complicated, expensive, and stressful court process.
Don’t leave it until it’s too late. An LPA can only be made while you have mental capacity, so the time to act is now.
Contact us for a free, no-obligation chat to discuss your situation and how we can help.
Get a free, no-obligation chat with our wills and probate team, call us on 02920 829 100 or use our Contact us form.
To speak to one of our experts today, please contact us on 02920 829 100 or by using our Contact Us form for a free initial chat to see how we can help.
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