For most people, the decisions they make every day are easy to make. But sometimes, due to illness, injury or a condition like dementia, a person might not be able to understand or make decisions clearly. This mental capacity is especially important when planning for the future, such as setting up a Lasting Power of Attorney, or LPA.
Why Mental Capacity Matters for Legal Planning
To set up an LPA, you must have mental capacity at the time the document is made. That means you need to understand what a LPA or power of attorney is, what it allows someone else to do for you and the consequences of signing it.
Mental capacity isn’t all-or-nothing. A person may be able to make some decisions, like what to wear or eat, but not others, like managing a mortgage or handling a will.
If you lose capacity before setting up an LPA, then family or friends can’t just step in and make decisions for you. At that point, your family may have to ask the Court of Protection to become a deputy, which is a longer and more complex process.
If you’ve been thinking about researching how to set up a https://powerofattorneyonline.co.uk/, remember many professionals advise not to wait until something happens. Planning early means you stay in control and your wishes are more likely to be respected.
But don’t worry, as you can easily set up a Power of Attorney online, making the process easy and convenient from the comfort of your own home.
How Mental Capacity Is Assessed
If there’s uncertainty about whether someone can make a specific decision, a capacity assessment may be carried out. This is usually done by a healthcare professional or someone trained in the Mental Capacity Act, the law that guides how these assessments are done. Importantly, the assessment focuses on a specific decision at a specific time. A person is considered to lack capacity if they cannot:
- Understand relevant information about the decision
- Remember that information
- Use or weigh the information to come to a decision
- Communicate the decision in any way
