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How to choose an attorney

When appointing an attorney you should consider:

• how well the person looks after their own affairs, such as having good finances
• how well you know the person
• whether you can trust them to use your money to meet your needs and make decisions in your interests
• how happy they will be to take on the role

You may want to appoint more than one person as an attorney to help prevent anyone taking advantage of their responsibility.

Being an attorney is an important role. You must be sure that the person you choose knows you well enough to make decisions on your behalf that are in your best interests. You must be able to trust them.

You also need to make sure that the person is happy to take on the role and its responsibilities.

• An attorney's duties under a Lasting Power of Attorney

Who you can choose to be your attorney

Your attorney(s) could be anyone aged 18 or over, for example:

• a family member
• a friend
• a professional (eg a solicitor)
• your spouse, partner, or civil partner

If your spouse or partner is nominated as your attorney but you later split up, your Lasting Power of Attorney will become invalid. However, they can still act as your attorney if:

• you included a condition in your Lasting Power of Attorney that they can continue to act as your attorney
• you appointed a replacement attorney who will automatically take over
• you have appointed more than one attorney and said they must make all or some decisions together

Who you cannot choose to be your attorney

You cannot choose anyone who:

• is under the age of 18
• lacks mental capacity
• has been declared bankrupt if you are making a Lasting Power of Attorney for property and financial affairs

An attorney will not be able to act if they are declared bankrupt after the Lasting Power of Attorney has been registered. Your Lasting Power of Attorney might also be cancelled if there are no other attorneys to act on your behalf.

• Cancelling or ending a Lasting or Enduring Power of Attorney

Choosing more than one attorney

At some point, your attorney(s) might not be able to make decisions for you. Reasons why this could happen could include:

• the attorney dies
• the attorney lacks mental capacity themselves
• the attorney decides that they do not want to act for you any more

Having at least one replacement attorney to make decisions means that when this happens, your Lasting Power of Attorney will continue to be usable.

For example, if you choose your spouse to be your attorney, you might choose a son or daughter as your replacement attorney if your spouse dies.

You can choose as many replacement attorneys as you like but once the Lasting Power of Attorney has been registered you cannot change any attorneys.

Getting professional advice

You do not normally need professional advice to make a Lasting Power of Attorney as the forms are designed to be easy to complete. However, if your personal, property and financial affairs are complicated, you should get advice from a solicitor before making an Lasting Power of Attorney.

• Making and registering a Lasting Power of Attorney