I’ve been notified about s21A proceedings, what do I do?

This is a question I get asked a lot, so I will try to talk you through the process as well as I can, both for professionals and family members. If you don’t know what s21A proceedings are, don’t worry, not many people do. They are very specialised proceedings in the Court of Protection broughtContinue reading “I’ve been notified about s21A proceedings, what do I do?”

Care Act assessment: part 4 the write-up

This is the final post in my series about Care Act needs assessments. So far we have looked at the actions to be taken at first contact with an individual, the eligibility criteria and the need for the process to be person-centred, appropriate and proportionate. This last post will explore one of my favourite topics:Continue reading “Care Act assessment: part 4 the write-up”

Care Act assessment: part 3 tailored assessments

This is the third post in my series about Care Act assessments of need. The first post explored the issues to be considered at the beginning of the assessment, and the second post talked through the eligibility criteria. This post will discuss how authorities tailor their assessment process to the individual being assessed. The careContinue reading “Care Act assessment: part 3 tailored assessments”

Care Act assessment: part 2 the criteria

This is the second post in my series on Care Act needs assessments. You can read the first part here. That post discussed the start of the process, and issues practitioners have to be mindful of at that stage. This post explores the eligibility criteria against which assessments must be conducted. These criteria are setContinue reading “Care Act assessment: part 2 the criteria”

The DoLS eligiblity test: possible routes out of the mire

I am talking here specifically about the eligibility assessment for the purposes of granting a standard authorisation under the deprivation of liberty safeguards (commonly referred to as the DoLS scheme). In case you aren’t familiar with the DoLS scheme, I’ll give a brief overview. It is the mechanism by which deprivation of an individual’s libertyContinue reading “The DoLS eligiblity test: possible routes out of the mire”

Ordinary residence, s117 and the Worcestershire decision

This judgement was released on 22 March 2021, but it is unlikely to be the last word on this issue as an appeal is in the works. In the meantime, any cases raising similar issues will be stayed, and determination only given after the outcome of that appeal is known. For those not familiar withContinue reading “Ordinary residence, s117 and the Worcestershire decision”

The inherent jurisdiction of the High Court: the regular red herring

I covered the basics of what the inherent jurisdiction is about in my previous post here. What this post will discuss is the reasons why it doesn’t provide a solution in the vast majority of cases. The first issue that presents is obtaining sufficient evidence to make a case to begin with. The type ofContinue reading “The inherent jurisdiction of the High Court: the regular red herring”

Maybe if I just lock the door…

…and other solutions that seem like common sense, but can actually create complex issues. I get these a lot, when a practitioner is doing a routine call and and a family member mentions something they are doing to support their family member. It seems perfectly sensible to them, but it raises a red flag inContinue reading “Maybe if I just lock the door…”

Brave new world: continuing healthcare delays under court scrutiny

I want to talk about the case if Surrey County Council v NHS Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group from 2020. This case largely slipped past under the radar for anyone who doesn’t have a special interest in continuing healthcare and the interplay between health and social care. But it was very interesting to me, and itContinue reading “Brave new world: continuing healthcare delays under court scrutiny”

Court of protection v inherent jurisdiction

I wanted talk about the difference between the Court of Protection and the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court because I have seen this cause a bit of confusion more than once in my practice. I am going to start with a bit of background, so bear with me. The inherent jurisdiction of the HighContinue reading “Court of protection v inherent jurisdiction”