Jointly or jointly and severally: which should I choose?
Last updated 22 August 2026
Jointly means all attorneys must decide together. Jointly and severally means any one attorney can decide. The choice has serious consequences if an attorney dies or drops out, so it is one of the most important decisions on the form.
What jointly means
If attorneys are appointed jointly, they must all act together for every decision. The serious consequence is that if one attorney dies, loses capacity, disclaims or is removed, the whole LPA fails unless there is a valid replacement attorney. The surviving attorney cannot simply continue alone.
What jointly and severally means
If attorneys are appointed jointly and severally, any one attorney can act independently. If one attorney drops out, the others can continue. This is more flexible and is the more common choice.
Invalid wording to avoid
If you appoint jointly and severally, you cannot add wording such as 'they must act together on sums over £5,000', 'two of three must act together', or 'X acts only if Y cannot'. If you appoint jointly, you cannot say 'the survivor may act alone if the other drops out'. That last one is the killer: under a joint appointment, if one attorney dies the whole LPA fails unless there is a valid replacement. Donors constantly try to patch this in section 7 and it does not work.
Mixed appointments
You can appoint jointly for some decisions and jointly and severally for others, but you must complete Continuation Sheet 2 specifying which decisions are which. You cannot allocate specific decisions to one named attorney; every decision must be either joint or joint and several.
Frequently asked questions
What happens to a joint LPA if one attorney dies?
The whole LPA fails unless there is a valid replacement attorney. The survivor cannot act alone.
Can I say my attorneys must agree by majority?
No. Majority voting is not a valid appointment structure.
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