Powers of attorney for your business

More and more people are familiar with the idea of Lasting Powers of Attorney – a document that appoints attorneys to make decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so yourself in the future because of mental or physical incapacity. Often these decisions will relate to personal issues such as paying bills, arranging insurance, sorting out care plans. However, what can be overlooked by owners of businesses is the need to think about suitable attorneys to run their business affairs. It may well be that someone suitable to look after your personal affairs (your spouse or a relative, for example) may not be appropriate in relation to your business interests.

If you are a director, partner and sole trader, we’d encourage you address this issue - whether by appointing separate business attorneys and personal attorneys within the same Lasting Power of Attorney or by having separate documents. In the case of directors, you should make sure that any Lasting Power of Attorney is consistent with the Articles of Association of your company as these often have provisions covering what happens if a director becomes incapacitated.