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TMJ Legal Services, solicitors, has been helping individuals and businesses for over 30 years. We offer a range of advice and services. Your first appointment is free to help you weigh up your options.
We offer appointments in Hartlepool, Durham, Peterlee, Wingate and Newcastle, and will give you a tailored quotation for the cost of your case wherever we can.
We have many solicitors who are accredited specialists in their area of work, and can also offer representation under Legal Aid.
Please browse through our site for information, factsheets and more.
A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document which allows you to decide who to appoint to make decisions on your behalf about your property & finances and/or your health & welfare. An LPA can be used by your attorney(s) in the event that you are no longer able to make such decisions.
A Property & Financial Affairs LPA covers aspects concerning your property & finances. For example, your attorney can assist with managing your bank accounts or contacting various financial institutions on your behalf. They can also act in more significant decisions for example, selling or purchasing a property. This LPA can be used both with your consent and in the event you are no longer able to make decisions yourself.
A Health & Welfare LPA allows your appointed attorney(s) to make decisions about your personal welfare for example your day to day care, decisions in relation to medical treatment and also life sustaining treatment, if you have expressly authorised this in your LPA. A Health & Welfare LPA can only be used if you lack capacity to make these decisions yourself.
According to the Alzheimer’s Society by 2025 more than 1 million people in the UK will have dementia. If you ever lost capacity, handling your affairs becomes virtually impossible.
If you are unable to manage your own affairs there is no automatic right for your spouse, partner, children, family member or friend to access your money or manage your personal affairs.
This is why an LPA is vital to help protect you and your family.
If you do not have an LPA in place and you were no longer able to manage your affairs your family can face the drawn out process of applying to the Court of Protection to appoint them as Deputy to act on your behalf. The cost of this application is much more expensive than an LPA application. Even more concerning is the choice of who to appoint lies with the Court, not with you, potentially resulting in someone acting who you may have not wanted to.
You can instruct a Solicitor to ensure your LPA is properly drafted and registered at the Office of the Public Guardian. For further information, please do not hesitate to contact me on 01429 230031 or email at cdonworth@tmjlegal.co.uk
