A power of attorney covers money and property: banking, bills, investments, and dealing with real estate. An enduring power of attorney is the one most people need, because it continues to operate if you lose mental capacity, which is exactly when it is needed.
It has to be made while you still have capacity. If illness or an accident comes first, the alternative is a court application to appoint a committee under the Patients Property Act, which takes months and costs many times more.
It is also a document worth taking seriously: the person you name can deal with almost everything you own. The scope can be limited, the powers can be split between people, and it can be written to start only when a doctor confirms you cannot manage on your own.
What we help with
- Enduring powers of attorney for finances and property
- Limited powers of attorney for a single transaction, such as a property sale while you are abroad
- Naming more than one attorney, jointly or separately, and naming alternates
- Conditions, limits and reporting requirements
- Revoking a power of attorney that is no longer wanted
- Concerns that an attorney is misusing the authority
How it usually works
- 01
Decide who and how much
We talk through who should act, whether more than one person should, and what they should and should not be able to do.
- 02
Draft to the Act
The document is prepared to meet the requirements of the Power of Attorney Act, including the attorney’s own signature accepting the role.
- 03
Sign and distribute
It is signed and witnessed correctly, and you are told who needs a copy, including your bank and, where property is involved, the Land Title Office.