The Duties of Certificate Provider – Lasting Powers of Attorney

Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs) are important instruments.

A person may decide to appoint trusted individuals to manage their Property & Financial affairs and make decisions about their Health & Welfare, if in the future they can no longer do this themselves.  The appointed individuals are called Attorneys.

A key aspect to setting up LPAs is having someone to act as your ‘Certificate Provider’. This can be someone who you have known on a personal level for at least two years or someone with relevant professional skills.

A Certificate Provider should be an independent person who will confirm that you are making the LPA out of your own free will, that you understand the implication of what you are setting up, and that you have mental capacity to set up the LPAs.

Part of this confirmation, is that the Certificate Provider is completely satisfied that Schedule 1 of the Mental Capacity Act 2015 is fulfilled:

• the person setting up the LPA understands its purpose and the scope of the authority being conferred on to their Attorneys

• No fraud or undue influence is at play to make the person set it up

• There is nothing else preventing the LPA from being created

In the recent case of TA v the Public Guardian (2023 EWCOP 63) the court clarified this checklist further, by ultimately suggesting that steps must be taken to form an opinion to satisfy the checklist, rather than merely witnessing a signature when the person signs the LPA.

Problems may arise for people who decide to prepare LPAs themselves, because they may not fully understand these rules. Instructing a solicitor to prepare LPAs may be beneficial for a variety of reasons:

1. We can act as your Certificate Provider acting under the relevant professional skills, with a wealth of experience

2. We ensure the documents are accurately drafted, signed and witnessed, and dated correctly.

3. We can advise you fully on preferences and instructions, and how attorneys should be appointed

4. We assess things like capacity and undue influences and subsequently record details of meetings and our opinions, which demonstrate that the person setting up the LPAs is making informed decisions on their own free will

Our friendly team will be happy to discuss Lasting Powers of Attorney if this is something you are considering. Get in touch today on 01536410014.