Enduring Power of Attorney

The attorney(s)' authorities and restrictions

Before making an EPA, a donor should consider the following matters carefully and seriously:

• the value of the donor’s assets;
• the variety of the donor’s assets, e.g. how much of them are in cash, real property, shares in private companies, shares in publicly listed companies, bonds, antiques, jewellery, vehicles, yachts, etc.; 
• how the donor wants the attorneys to manage these assets in case of the donor’s mental incapacity, e.g. to sell part of them, to maintain them to generate rental income or interest, to use part of them for the donor’s daily living, to give part of them as gifts to designated person(s), etc.; and
• whether or not the attorneys have to seek professional advice (e.g. for legal or financial aspects) if they intend to enter into a transaction the value of which exceeds a specified amount.

The donor must:

• specify what the attorneys’ authority is in dealing with the donor’s particular property or financial affairs. For example, the donor may decide to give his/her attorneys only power over a particular bank account, or a particular piece of property.

The donor may:

• place any restrictions he/she likes on the authority the donor gives to his/her attorneys in the EPA.

Please note: Unless the donor includes a restriction preventing it, his/her attorneys will be able to:

• use any of the donor’s money or property to make any provision which the donor might be expected to make himself/herself for the needs of the attorneys or the needs of other persons;
• use the donor’s money to make gifts, but only for reasonable amounts in relation to the value of the money and property.

The donor must not:

• give his/her attorney(s) a general authority over the donor’s property and financial affairs;
• give his/her attorney(s) an authority over other affairs apart from the donor’s property and financial affairs; or
• give his/her attorney(s) an authority to nominate other person to act as an attorney or to exercise the attorney’s authority;