I was struck when RO said “I don’t want to kill my baby”. I was already feeling disappointed for RO throughout the hearing, but these words left me feeling extremely sad for her. Was she feeling like the clinicians involved in her care were viewing her as killing her baby?
Tag Archives: Mental Capacity
Who should take responsibility for property and financial affairs – the Local Authority or the family?
I can’t help feeling that there is a serious gap in the law which is supposed to ensure the best interests of someone who has been judged to lack capacity and yet (in the absence of an LPA) leaves their property and finances in limbo until another quite separate and lengthy legal process has taken place. I was very lucky that my mother’s house was not vandalized, as P’s house obviously had been.
Anorexia and refusing nutrition: An observer’s perspective on A Mental Health Trust v BG
By Charlotte Buck, 4th August 2022 This case concerned Anorexia and the refusal of clinically assisted nutrition and hydration (CANH) – another sad case brought before the Court of Protection for which the circumstances are all too familiar. I have always been interested in complex medical-ethical cases and, having volunteered on hospital wards for six weeks myself,Continue reading “Anorexia and refusing nutrition: An observer’s perspective on A Mental Health Trust v BG”
Observing a s.21A hearing and the importance of correctly drafting a Lasting Power of Attorney
The overall tone of the meeting was very positive, non-adversarial and there seemed to be a large degree of agreement between the participants. The judge was very welcoming and the overall impression from everybody was wanting to do the right thing for P.
A contested hearing about whether or not to have another hearing
By Celia Kitzinger, 26th July 2022 This hearing (COP 13452747 before by DJ Beckley at First Avenue House on 6th July 2022, via MS Teams) was originally intended to be a review hearing to consider how P, a man in his 20s with learning disability, autism and epilepsy, has settled into his new placement. The plan had been to reviewContinue reading “A contested hearing about whether or not to have another hearing”
A deputy’s first experience of observing a Court of Protection hearing
By Jamal L. Din, 27th July 2022 For some time now I’ve wanted to observe a hearing in the Court of Protection to gain experience of how the court hearing is run, and understand how the interests of the protected parties (and their families) are supported. I am a Deputy for Property and Finance forContinue reading “A deputy’s first experience of observing a Court of Protection hearing”
Determining capacity for sex with her abuser
By Celia Kitzinger, 25th July 2022 UPDATE: We’re sad to learn (from Mr Justice Poole on Thursday 27th October 2022) that the woman at the centre of this case (KF) has recently died. This is a desperately sad story about a woman (KF) who is pleading to have intimate unsupervised contact with her abuser before she dies[1]. Continue reading “Determining capacity for sex with her abuser”
Serious Medical Treatment and Restraint: A young woman with HIV
At the centre of this case is a 17-year-old woman (P), born overseas, who is living with HIV. It is believed she acquired HIV vertically at birth, and her mother died when she was young. P has been raised by her grandmother in this country, and in recent years it appears that she has been looking after her grandmother, who is now elderly with health issues of her own.
An “unacceptable” care placement – and why public observers help to hold the state to account
By Jordan Briggs, 22nd July 2022 This hearing, listed before His Honour Judge Berkley at Manchester County Court (via MS Teams) on Wednesday 20th July 2022, concerned a woman in her early twenties with complex emotional needs (‘P’) who had absconded from her placement on 18th March 2022. There’s a previous blog post on the Open Justice CourtContinue reading “An “unacceptable” care placement – and why public observers help to hold the state to account”
Family members as parties to proceedings: Pros and cons
By Astral Heaven, 21st July 2022 I am a Local Authority Approved Mental Health Professional (AMHP) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) Lead and a practising Best Interests Assessor (BIA). Part of my role as BIA when I’m undertaking DoLS assessments is to talk with the person I am assessing, and with their family and friends,Continue reading “Family members as parties to proceedings: Pros and cons”
Promoting Open Justice in the Court of Protection 