Wills, Trusts, Probate & Elderly Client

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Legal Terms

Beneficiary

The person / or charity who will receive a gift or gifts from an estate.

Codicil

An addition or change to your existing will, written on a separate page and signed by you in the joint presence of two witnesses who also sign the page.

Donor

(in the context of an Enduring Power of Attorney) – the person making the Power of Attorney and appointing someone to look after their affairs.

EPA

Enduring Power of Attorney. A person nominated to deal with someones affairs when, due to physical or mental frailty they can not do so for themselves.  These are valid if they were signed prior to end September 2007.  You can no longer create a new EPA but any in existence prior to that date may still be valid   Also see Lasting Powers Attorney.

Estate

The value of your property, land, investments and money in total.

Executor

The person who puts in to effect your wishes as detailed in your will. They are nominated by you. They can also be beneficiaries of the will. Their duties do not start until you have died. Having taken on that responsibility they have to follow the process through to the end. You can refuse to be an executor.

LPA

Lasting Power of Attorney.  Power given to a person nominated to deal with your financial and / or personal welfare matters.  The attorneys of a personal welfare power can only make decisions when the donor of the power has lost capacity to do so themselves.  The LPA replaced the EPA at the end of September 2007.