Investments and pensions as an attorney
Guidance from Estate Advisory Group
Written and legally reviewed by Ramani Gill TEP, Solicitor and private client practitioner·Last reviewed 13 August 2026
You can manage the donor's money, but delegating it to a fund manager needs express permission in the LPA.
The discretionary management trap
Add the wording when you make the LPA
An attorney cannot delegate investment decisions to a discretionary fund manager unless the LPA says so. If the donor already uses one, the LPA should include an instruction permitting it — retrofitting this later needs the Court of Protection. See preferences and instructions.
This trips up more families than any other investment question. The Mental Capacity Act treats delegating investment decisions to a discretionary manager as a further delegation of the attorney's own authority, which the general law does not allow unless the donor expressly permitted it in the LPA itself.
What you can do without special wording
- Operate accounts, move money between the donor's own accounts and pay bills.
- Take advice and make investment decisions yourself, prudently and for the donor's benefit.
- Subscribe to a cash ISA, and manage existing holdings.
- Claim a pension the donor is entitled to and arrange income payments.
- Sell or switch existing fund holdings on the advice of an independent financial adviser, as long as you make the actual decision.
Worked example
Anil is attorney for his mother, Kamala, who holds a stocks and shares ISA and several unit trusts through an execution-only platform. Kamala's LPA did not mention discretionary management, so when the platform suggests moving her holdings into a discretionary managed portfolio, Anil takes independent financial advice instead, makes the switching decisions himself between simpler funds, and records his reasoning. He does not hand ongoing discretion to the adviser or the platform, because the LPA gives him no power to do that.
Comparing your options
| Approach | Needs LPA wording? | Attorney's role |
|---|---|---|
| Attorney makes the decisions, with advice | No | You choose; adviser only advises |
| Discretionary fund manager | Yes — an express instruction | Manager decides day to day within a mandate |
| Cash ISA management | No | You subscribe and manage as normal |
| Pension drawdown or transfer | No express wording needed, but take advice | You decide, with regulated advice and a paper trail |
Pensions need care
Providers vary widely in what they accept. Drawdown decisions, transfers and annuity purchases are significant and should be taken with regulated financial advice and a written note of your reasoning. Anything that looks like estate planning rather than the donor's benefit is off limits.
Some pension providers will only deal with an attorney once they have seen the registered LPA and completed their own internal forms, which can take several weeks — start this process as soon as you know a decision, such as a drawdown review, is coming up.
Common questions
Can I open a stocks and shares ISA for the donor?
Most providers refuse an attorney-opened stocks and shares ISA. Cash ISAs are usually accepted.
Can I take money from the donor's pension to fund gifts?
No. See can an attorney make gifts.
What if the donor already had a discretionary manager before losing capacity?
If the LPA does not authorise it, you generally need to move to a non-discretionary arrangement, or apply to the Court of Protection for authority to continue it.
Do I need to review the donor's investments regularly?
Yes — as attorney you are expected to manage the donor's affairs prudently, which normally means periodic reviews with appropriate advice, not leaving investments unattended.
Read next
Where this fits
This page is part of Attorneys and certificate providers. The pages below take it further.
- Make an LPA online
The whole journey end to end: questions, documents, signing and registration.
- The LPA forms explained
LP1F, LP1H and LP3 — what each section asks and where people go wrong.
Review and sources
Reviewed by Ramani Gill TEP, Solicitor and private client practitioner. Last reviewed 13 August 2026. We recheck fees, forms and Office of the Public Guardian guidance whenever they change — see our editorial policy.
Official sources
Making your own LPA?
Name your attorneys, set how they must decide together, and we prepare the forms for £49.
The Office of the Public Guardian charges a separate £92 to register each LPA.
This is general information about how Lasting Powers of Attorney work in England and Wales. It is not legal advice about your situation. What we do and do not do.
Published by Estate Advisory Group