LPAsSigning a Lasting Power of Attorney

Signing a Lasting Power of Attorney

In order for a Lasting Power of Attorney to be completed correctly it must be signed and dated in a certain order, with any deviation risking it being returned from the Office of the Public Guardian unregistered. As the Office of the Public Guardian can take up to 16 weeks to register a Lasting Power of Attorney, following these steps will help keep the waiting time to a minimum.

Section 5—Life-sustaining treatment

Only applicable to Health and Welfare Lasting Powers of Attorney.

This page must be signed, dated and witnessed at the same time as Section 9 (detailed below). It should be noted that only one box needs to be signed. Any errors on this page will result in Option B (not giving authority for life-sustaining treatment) being the default.

Section 9—Signature: donor

This page, and any appropriate continuation sheets, must be signed and dated before anyone signs Sections 10 and 11. It must also be witnessed at the same time. The Witness cannot be an Attorney but can be the Certificate Provider.

Section 10—Signature: certificate provider

The Certificate Provider must complete their details (if we have not already done so) and sign and date the page. The date cannot be earlier than the date the Donor has signed Section 9 and it is good practice for it to be signed and date at the same time as the Donor completes Section 9. No witnesses are required for this section.

Section 11—Signature: attorney or replacement attorney

Each Attorney must sign and date on their relevant page (there is a page provided for each attorney). The witness can be anyone except the Donor and it is permissible for another Attorney to be the witness. Likewise, the Certificate Provider can also be a witness. All signatures must be dated either on the same day as the Certificate Provider’s signature in Section 9 or later.

Section 15—Signature

The person (or persons) applying to register the Lasting Power of Attorney must sign and date this page. It is imperative that it is signed and dated the same day as the last Attorney has signed or later.

Note: It is perfectly acceptable for the Lasting Power of Attorney to be signed and dated on the same day throughout the document. Indeed, having the Donor, Certificate Provider and Attorneys in the same room to complete the signing and dating greatly simplifies things.