LEGAL SERVICES
POWER OF ATTORNEY
Life is full of uncertainties, we take out car and home insurance to protect our assets from damage, but we don’t consider what may happen to our assets if we become incapacitated by way of accident, stroke, ill health or old age. A Power of Attorney can grant a trusted individual or individuals the Powers to manage your financial affairs and welfare, should you become incapacitated. But it must be done while you still have capacity to do so.
What would happen if we were unable to manage our affairs because we were physically unable to do so for health or mental reasons? As the population ages, we are experiencing more instances of cognitive diseases such as Alzheimer’s and dementia. This has caused an increased number of enquiries regarding Guardianships, which can be a costly and lengthy process of applying to the Court for appointment of a legal guardian. A typical guardianship application can cost a four figure sum and take months to complete.
However, provided that the granter is of sound mind, a Power of Attorney can be granted. The Power of Attorney is a straight forward legal document stating who you would like to act as your Attorney and containing a list of powers you grant, if you are unable to deal with your own affairs. It is your choice who should act as your Attorney. We highly recommend that is be someone that you trust, for instance a spouse, family member, friend, or a professional. You can choose a combination if you so wish. We also recommend choosing at least two people to act as your Attorney acting either jointly/jointly and individually or as a substitute should the first appointed attorney predecease or be unable to act.
A Power of Attorney can also be used if you want someone to look after your affairs for a limited period of time for example if you are going abroad.
The work we provide will include preparing the Power of Attorney, having it executed, preparing the Application for Registration for signature by the Attorney and submitting it to the Office of the Public Guardian for registration, where appropriate. We will keep you informed of all significant developments.
James Thomson & Son always offers a personal approach and once you instruct us to deal with your matter, you will be assigned a specific named person who will deal with your transaction and with you as the matter progresses. You can be confident that if you instruct us and your solicitor is unavailable for any reason, that there will be always be another team member who can help you deal with your matter as soon as possible.