ENDURING POWER OF ATTORNEY

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An Enduring Power of Attorney is a legally binding document that remains in effect until your death. It allows you to appoint a trusted individual or individuals (referred to as the "attorney") to manage your financial and legal affairs if you lose the capacity to make decisions for yourself.

Under certain circumstances, the law may determine that you are unable to make legal decisions for yourself due to a loss of capacity. This means you are considered to be in a vulnerable state that impairs your judgement. In such cases, the law intervenes to protect you by restricting your ability to engage in financial and legal transactions.

Loss of capacity can arise from a medical emergency, illness, or disability. You can choose for your Enduring Power of Attorney to take effect:

• Immediately upon signing,
• For a specific period of time,
• In the event that you lose legal capacity, or
• When your appointed attorney determines that you require assistance in managing your affairs.

By signing an Enduring Power of Attorney, you authorise your attorney to act on your behalf in financial and health matters.

This includes:

• Signing legally binding documents,
• Paying bills,
• Accessing bank accounts, and
• Buying or selling property, if necessary;
• Make decisions about your health care (not for special health matters).

Your attorney is legally obligated to act in your best interests whenever they exercise their authority under the Enduring Power of Attorney.

You can appoint one or more attorney to act for you either jointly, severally, and successively. 

In the event of a medical emergency, your loved ones or next of kin do not automatically have the right to make legal and financial decisions on your behalf. Without an Enduring Power of Attorney, they would need to apply to be appointed as your attorney.

Having an Enduring Power of Attorney in place ensures that decisions can be made promptly by individuals you trust and have personally chosen. Additionally, it can be particularly useful if you travel, as it allows your attorney to manage your financial and legal affairs while you are overseas.

If you do not currently have an Enduring Power of Attorney or would like to learn more about this important document, we would be delighted to assist you. 

Our team is here to guide you through the process and ensure your estate planning needs are met with professionalism and care.