What Happens If an Attorney Dies?

Written by James Tyrrell · Reviewed by Anthony Dalton · Last reviewed 16 March 2026

It is not something anyone likes to think about, but the person you have chosen as your attorney could pass away — either before the LPA is ever needed or while they are actively managing your affairs. Does the LPA simply stop working? Not necessarily. What happens next depends on how many attorneys you appointed, whether they were appointed jointly or jointly and severally, and whether you named any replacement attorneys.

How Joint vs Joint and Several Appointments Affect What Happens

The way you appointed your attorneys has a significant impact on what happens if one of them dies. Under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, there are two main ways to appoint multiple attorneys:

How Replacement Attorneys Work

When you create an LPA, you have the option to name one or more replacement attorneys. A replacement attorney steps into the role if an original attorney can no longer act — whether because they have died, lost mental capacity themselves, or decided to give up the role (known as disclaiming).

Replacement attorneys are activated automatically when an original attorney can no longer serve. They take on the same powers and responsibilities as an attorney, and the LPA continues to operate as normal.

• If attorneys were appointed jointly and one dies, a replacement attorney steps in and the LPA remains valid
• If attorneys were appointed jointly and severally and one dies, the remaining attorneys continue — and the replacement may also step in, depending on how the LPA was drafted
• You can name multiple replacement attorneys, and you can specify the order in which they should step in
• Replacement attorneys must be at least 18 years old and have mental capacity

What Happens If Your Only Attorney Dies?

If you appointed a single attorney and they die, the LPA ceases to be effective. Without a replacement attorney named in the document, there is no one left with authority to act on your behalf. The LPA is essentially terminated.

If you still have mental capacity at this point, you can simply create a new LPA naming a different attorney. However, if you have already lost capacity, you cannot create a new LPA, and your family would need to apply to the Court of Protection for a deputyship order — a much more costly and time-consuming process.

Notifying the Office of the Public Guardian

When an attorney dies, the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) should be notified so that their records can be updated. The OPG maintains a register of all LPAs in England and Wales, and keeping this register accurate is important.

To notify the OPG, you will typically need to provide:

• A copy of the death certificate
• The LPA reference number (if known)
• The full name and date of birth of the deceased attorney
• Details of any replacement attorneys named in the LPA

The OPG can be contacted by post, telephone, or through their online service. There is no fee for notifying them of an attorney's death.

Creating a New LPA If Needed

If the death of an attorney has left your LPA with fewer attorneys than you would like — or if the LPA has been revoked entirely because you appointed attorneys jointly — you may wish to create a new LPA. This is only possible if the donor (the person who made the LPA) still has mental capacity.

A new LPA must go through the full registration process with the OPG, which includes the £92 registration fee per LPA and a waiting period of several weeks. The new LPA does not need to mirror the old one — you can choose entirely different attorneys, add more replacement attorneys, or change the appointment type.

If you already have a registered LPA that is still valid (for example, because your remaining attorney can still act under a joint and several appointment), you can keep it in place and create a new one alongside it, or revoke the existing one and start afresh.

How to Protect Your LPA Against an Attorney's Death

The best way to avoid these problems is to plan ahead when creating your LPA. A few straightforward steps make all the difference:

• Appoint more than one attorney — having two or more attorneys provides resilience if one can no longer act
• Consider a joint and several appointment — this ensures the LPA survives the loss of one attorney
• Always name replacement attorneys — this is your safety net, especially if attorneys are appointed jointly
• Choose attorneys of different ages — appointing people from different generations reduces the risk of all attorneys being unable to act at the same time
• Review your LPA periodically — if circumstances change (for example, if a named attorney becomes seriously ill), consider updating your LPA while you still can

You cannot amend an existing LPA once it has been registered. If you want to change your attorneys or add replacements, you must create an entirely new LPA.

An Attorney Dying: Answers to Key Questions

This guide was last reviewed and updated on 16 March 2026. Information is based on current legislation and OPG guidance for England and Wales.

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