'We delay decisions when life is easy,' says solicitor at Rotary talk

“We prevaricate and defer making decisions when life is easy,” Jonathan Edwards, a member of the team at Wace Morgan Solicitors, told members of Shrewsbury Severn Rotary Club.

“When life is easy, you are busy making other plans. But it is important to prepare and get things such as wills and power of attorney set up.

“It is always better to make a will when not urgent because, for example, of ill health.”

He said there were two types of Lasting Power of Attorney, one dealing with health and care decisions, the other with financial decisions.

Jonathan told members: “Lasting Powers of Attorney must be set up when an individual has sufficient mental capacity.

“Once in place they rarely need changing, whereas it is advisable to regularly review wills, especially where circumstances change.”

He recommended that wills were reviewed on a five-year cycle.

Jonathan also told Rotarians: “Enduring Powers of Attorney were succeeded by Lasting Powers of Attorney in 2007.

“EPAs can still be used today. However, they are more limited in scope as they only give the attorney power over financial affairs - and not ‘Health and Welfare’ - and there may be other good reasons to replace them with Lasting Power of Attorney.”

He told the Rotary club: “It is essential to have Lasting Power of Attorney in place if you want to have peace of mind in knowing your affairs, whether health or financial, will be carried out according to your wishes if you lose mental capacity.”

Finally, he told Rotarians: “You can prepare a will without legal expertise. However, this may not be advisable.

“The execution of any will must comply with the 1837 Wills Act. And as we live in a more litigious age, and the contents of more wills are legally challenged, it is perhaps even more sensible to consult an expert when drafting a will.”

Anyone wishing to know more about Shrewsbury Severn Rotary Club can contact gdmw@hotmail.co.uk.