“Does that mean I am off the hook?”: A successful s21a Deprivation of Liberty Challenge

By Claire Martin, 23rd June 2025 I had some unexpected time on Monday 16th June 2025, so I had a look at the listings the night before, and this one caught my eye because it said ‘FINAL HEARING’, so I knew that the judge’s determination on the matters listed (‘capacity and best interests’) was likelyContinue reading ““Does that mean I am off the hook?”: A successful s21a Deprivation of Liberty Challenge”

US expert to assess whether COVID-19 vaccination is in P’s best interests 

By Celia Kitzinger, 12th March 2024 He’s in his early 20s with a severe learning disability, having been born with partial Trisomy 13, meaning that he has an extra chromosome.  He also has a congenital heart condition known as “Tetralogy of Fallot”. He lives at home with his mother who is his primary carer (though he alsoContinue reading “US expert to assess whether COVID-19 vaccination is in P’s best interests “

Standoff about the appropriate expert: A pragmatic judicial solution

By Celia Kitzinger, 21 February 2023 Laura Wareham, 34, has been in hospital since April 2022 following an emergency admission.  She has “a hugely complicated medical background”, including “autistic spectrum disorder”, “bipolar affective disorder” and “Bodily Distress Syndrome”. An independent expert  has found that she lacks capacity to make decisions about residence, care and support, medical treatment andContinue reading “Standoff about the appropriate expert: A pragmatic judicial solution”

“At loggerheads”: Habitual residence, best interests and life-sustaining treatment

loggerheads”, but also that the family was effectively “on a different page” about how serious treatment decisions are made in a patient’s best interests, and how the Court of Protection works to ensure that.