When my clients come to see me, it's usually to talk about a Will. That makes sense: a Will decides what happens to everything you've built, for the people you love. But there's a quieter document that matters just as much, and it isn't about your family at all — it's about you.
That document is a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA).
Two documents, two different jobs
A Will speaks for you after you've died. It has no power at all while you're alive — however ill or incapacitated you become, your Will simply waits. An LPA does the opposite: it only works while you're alive, and specifically for the moments you are vulnerable and can no longer speak for yourself. It lets you choose, in advance, who steps in to make decisions about your money and your welfare if you lose the mental capacity to make them yourself — through a stroke, an accident, dementia, or sudden illness.
Put simply: your Will looks after the people you leave behind. Your LPA looks after you.
"But my spouse can decide for me, surely?"
This is the assumption I hear most often, and it isn't true. Marriage or civil partnership gives your spouse no automatic legal authority over your finances or medical care. If you lose capacity without an LPA in place, banks can freeze accounts — including joint ones. Hospitals will look to clinicians to make decisions — your next of kin may be consulted, but they won't have the final say. A care home isn't obliged to follow your spouse's wishes about your admission. Without an LPA, the person who knows you best may have no legal standing to help you at exactly the point you need them most.
It isn't just an "older person's" document
Capacity can be lost at any age, and a serious accident or sudden illness doesn't wait for retirement. Because an LPA has to be made while you still have capacity, the only time to act is now, while you don't yet need it. Once capacity is lost, it's too late to make one.
The two types of LPA
We call someone who makes decisions for you an attorney. They are appointed by you. You have the freedom to appoint more than one attorney, and even to have a substitute attorney if your original attorney cannot take up the role.
Most people benefit from having both LPAs:
Property and Financial Affairs LPA — your attorney can manage bank accounts, pay bills, and handle your financial affairs.
Health and Welfare LPA — your attorney can make decisions about your medical treatment, care, and daily welfare, once you've lost capacity.
You choose exactly what powers to give, and you can add your own instructions or restrictions.
What happens if you don't have one
Without an LPA, nobody is automatically authorised to act for you. Your family would need to apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed as a deputy — a process that is slower, more expensive, and more stressful than making an LPA in advance. The court decides who is appointed and what powers they receive, with no guarantee it matches who you would have chosen.
A Will and an LPA belong together
Neither document does the other's job. A Will without an LPA leaves you unprotected while you're alive; an LPA without a Will leaves your family without direction once you're gone. Together, they mean the people and decisions that matter to you are looked after — at every stage.
Getting started
At On Yin Li Solicitor, LPAs are prepared on a fixed-fee basis, so you know the full cost before I begin — details are on my Fees page.
If you'd like to talk through what an LPA would mean for your circumstances, get in touch for a no-obligation conversation.
This article is general information only and does not constitute legal or tax advice. On Yin Li Solicitor is regulated by the SRA (SRA number 8006709) and provides Will and Lasting Power of Attorney services only; this practice does not offer standalone lifetime tax planning advice. Please get in touch to discuss your individual circumstances. All rights reserved.