Nigel Ready, honorary chairman, and Jake Humbles, trainee scrivener notary, have recently contributed to an important study on the essential conditions for the validity of notarised powers of attorney published by the European Affairs Commission of the International Union of Notaries (UINL).
Whenever an individual or entity based in one country wishes to authorise another person to act on his behalf in another country, it is likely that a cross-border power of attorney will be required. This study, led by the French notary Edmond Jacoby, aimed to produce a comprehensive reference work for practitioners across Europe who may be confronted with such instruments in their day-to-day work. It updates and expands upon an earlier study from 2007, reflecting local updates from each country as well as recent developments in European law.
The bulk of the study consists of written submissions made by notaries and jurists across Europe about the legal requirements for validly issuing and using powers of attorney in their own jurisdictions. As well as contributing to the submission on behalf of England and Wales, Nigel and Jake were involved in collating, curating and editing the English-language responses from 25 other countries, ready for publication in book form.
The book was launched at the meeting of the European Affairs Commission in Barcelona in November 2019, attended by Jake as a special guest, and during which Nigel was honoured by the presentation of a plaque in recognition of Cheeswrights’ contributions to this and many other UINL projects. A second edition of the book, covering even more jurisdictions, is anticipated shortly.