When discussing lasting powers of attorney (LPAs) with clients, usually their immediate concern is appointing an attorney to deal with their personal affairs. But this overlooks another key question: who would run your business if you were ill, or had an accident and lost capacity?
If you do not have a specific plan in place for this, it is highly advisable to consider this question. Failing to put measures in effect to account for these eventualities could place the future of your company at risk if the worst should happen.
In this blog post, Walker Foster’s Wills and Probate Executive Cay Schofield shares her advice on what kind of LPAs businesses should consider, and the factors they should take into account when setting them up.
There is no specific type of LPA known as a “business LPA”. Instead, my advice would be to have two separate LPAs for property and financial affairs: one for your personal affairs, and one for your business affairs.
Setting up an LPA for your business is straightforward but requires attention to detail:
When appointing an attorney for your personal LPA people often consider personal relationships first, would this person be the best person to run your business?
Each business structure has its own specific needs when it comes to an LPA:
If you don’t set up a lasting power of attorney for your business, you risk disruption to your business if you lose capacity. Without an LPA in place:
Having a business LPA is important to protect your business’s continuity and ensure that, even if you are unable to manage it yourself, your employees, clients and finances will still be looked after by an appropriate person. As such, they should be considered an essential element of your business continuity planning.
If you are looking for advice on any aspect of creating a business LPA, speak to our Wills and Trusts team. For advice on your business structure or to review your partnership agreements or articles of association, please contact our Business department.
You can contact us here to find out more.
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