Lasting Power of Attorney
A Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document that enables you to appoint a third party to handle your affairs, should you lose the capacity to make decisions for yourself.
This may be due to a brain injury, for example, or an illness such as dementia.
Crucially, this appointment can only be made when you are mentally fit and well. Leaving it too late can mean that trusted relatives and friends are powerless to make decisions for you.
If they cannot access your bank account for example, how will the mortgage / rent and other bills be paid?
Who would you prefer to make decisions about your medical care?
There are two types of LPA and you can appoint the same or different people for each category: Health and Welfare and Financial.
Who would you prefer to make decisions about your medical care?
There are two types of LPA and you can appoint the same or different people for each category: Health and welfare and Financial.
Offering a Friendly and Professional Service
We can always help no matter how complicated the circumstances are.
It is important to write your will, to avoid any further distress and complications after your death, your loved ones will need reassurance, support and care.
Get in touch today to find out more about the support and services that Certainty can offer to you and your family.>
The Terminology
To understand the terms and roles of Appointment, here are some basic terminology, which we hope will clarify the terms we use.
Executors are the people appointed to deal with your Will upon your death. Their job is to collect your property, pay anything owed and then distribute the remainder of the property to those you want to benefit.
A Legal Guardian is a person who has the Legal Authority (and the corresponding duty) to care for the personal and property interests of another person called a ward. Guardians tend to care and look after minors (children).
Personal representatives have wide powers given to them by statute and in many situations these statutory powers will be both sufficient and appropriate to enable the Will and any simple trusts created under it to be administered effectively. However, some circumstances will require these statutory powers to be either restricted or, more commonly, extended and if that is the case the appropriate restrictions or extensions should be added.
Funeral Wishes
It is the executors and not the testator (the person making the Wills) who have the right to dispose of the testator’s corpse. Regardless of this, many testators want to express wishes concerning their funeral and the disposal of their body in their Will in the hope or expectation that their executors will abide by these wishes. The inclusion of such wishes may also help to reduce the risk of painful and expensive disagreement among the testator’s family and loved ones after his or her death.
Administration of the Estate
This clause allows the Administration of the Estate by the executors. It empowers them to collect in assets, pay debts and testamentary (funeral) expenses as well as pay an applicable inheritance tax.
Gift of Residue
A residuary gift is the ‘sweep up’ provision in a Will, intended to provide for the disposition of the whole of the testator’s estate insofar as not already gifted by the earlier parts of the Will. Many testators will envisage a Will that deals with each of their assets in a specific way and with no residuary clause because they believe that they will have provided for everything. However, any Will, even one containing many specific gifts, should contain a residuary gift to avoid an unforeseen partial intestacy (i.e. gifts that are not given under the terms of the Will).
Beneficiary
The person who receives your assets after your death.
A Will
A Will is a legal document by which a person, who expresses their wishes as to how their property is to be distributed at death and names one or more persons, as the executor to manage the estate.
A Lasting Powers of Attorney
A Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document that enables you to appoint a third party to handle your affairs, should you lose the capacity to make decisions for yourself.
A Lasting Powers of Attorney
A Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document that enables you to appoint a third party to handle your affairs, should you lose the capacity to make decisions for yourself.
Limitation of Will
Unless otherwise stated, a Will covers all your worldwide assets
Legal Guardian
A guardian is someone you have named in your Will as the person you would like to be responsible for your children if they are orphaned before reaching the age of 18.
Trustee
Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, can refer to any person who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the benefit of another, also a Trustee can be a person who is allowed to do certain tasks but not able to gain income.
Inheritance Tax
Inheritance Tax is a tax on the estate (the property, money and possessions) of someone who’s died.
Gift
It can be anything that has a value such as money, property, possessions.