Lasting Powers of Attorney are increasingly popular legal instruments in the UK, but there are circumstances in which they can be challenged.
In the year to March 2024, the Office of the Public Guardian received 1.37m applications to register an LPA, an increase of 300,000 on the previous year. You can find information about creating a UK power of attorney online at sites such as https://powerofattorneyonline.co.uk/.
Below, we take a close look at who can challenge an LPA and when they can do so.
Can I object to an LPA?
Individuals can object to an LPA by contacting the Office of the Public Guardian. Under certain circumstances, you may also have to contact the Court of Protection.
How you lodge an objection will depend on why you are raising an objection, if you are a person to be notified. If you fall into this category, you will have been informed by one of the attorneys or the donor. You will be able to make a factual objection or an objection on prescribed grounds.
Factual Objections
Factual objections involve circumstances where the donor or an attorney has died, the attorney no longer has the mental capacity to carry out duties, or the donor and attorney were married or in a civil partnership and that relationship has terminated. If the attorney has stepped down from their position or if the donor or attorney is declared bankrupt, interim bankrupt or subject to a debt relief order, you may also object. The latter refers to property and financial affairs attorneys.
Prescribed Objections
If you believe the LPA is not legal or the donor did not have the mental capacity to create the LPA, you may object. If the donor has cancelled their LPA after regaining mental capacity, an objection is allowable. If fraud was involved or if any pressure was applied to the donor, an objection can be raised. Finally, you can object if you believe the attorney is not acting in the best interests of the donor.
Evidence must be provided in the case of a prescribed or factual objection.