lawyers | Local Authority Lawyer in Adult Social Care

Miracle on the High Street

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you will know that as a child I was heavily influenced by the classic Christmas film Miracle on 34th Street. After spending a lot of time in my studies thinking I wanted to work for the Crown Prosecution Service, I accidentally found myself in an areaContinue reading “Miracle on the High Street”

Networking as an introvert

As I mentioned, I have recently changed roles (again). I’m still in private practice doing largely legal aid work so I wasn’t expecting much of the job to change, just the people and the work environment. My current firm is much more vocal about employees’ skills and successes, though. I’m also one of the firstContinue reading “Networking as an introvert”

Needles in haystacks: reviewing social care records

Today I want to talk about one of the more time-consuming aspects of my job: reviewing social care records. Or, more accurately, reviewing social care, care provider and healthcare records. You may or may not be aware, but it is standard practise in Court of Protection proceedings that the court will make disclosure orders requiringContinue reading “Needles in haystacks: reviewing social care records”

How the court decides on best interests: is that really that important though?

This is the third post in my series about how the Court of Protection makes best interests decisions. In practice, it’s a messy process, but I have broken it down into stages to make it easier to understand. Or that’s my intention anyway. If I’m only confusing you further, I do apologise! So we startedContinue reading “How the court decides on best interests: is that really that important though?”

Round table meetings: what to expect

Today I am going to talk about round table meetings during Court of Protection proceedings. Or RTMs as they are commonly referred to. They are a very valuable part of the process, but when invitations go out, I do get people calling me up to ask about what the meeting is for, and what they’llContinue reading “Round table meetings: what to expect”

Bearing a burden that isn’t yours to carry

The purpose of this blog is primarily to provide insights into the legal concepts and processes at play within adult social care. I am aware that most of you are here for that information. But I also believe in looking at concepts in context, and some of that context is personal. Burn out, compassion fatigueContinue reading “Bearing a burden that isn’t yours to carry”

What it’s like to work as an in house local authority lawyer: what I didn’t like

This is not a bitter confessional from a disgruntled employee, but it is only fair to acknowledge some of the challenges of working in local authority as an adult social care lawyer. I don’t work there anymore, so if I couldn’t give some negatives, you’d just assume I was lying! I spoke in my earlierContinue reading “What it’s like to work as an in house local authority lawyer: what I didn’t like”

What its like to work as an in house local authority lawyer: what I loved

For many, New Year is a time for reflection and 2021 has certainly been an eventful year. As regular readers of this blog will know, 2021 is also the year I left local authority and took a private practice role. It’s been nearly 6 months since then and I am (probation period dependant) settling intoContinue reading “What its like to work as an in house local authority lawyer: what I loved”

Tips for statement writing: What lawyers really think when they read a statement

I am going to talk today about witness statements, but a lot of these principles will apply to any formal report that is used to evidence reasoning such as assessments for Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, social circumstances reports etc. This is largely aimed at social care professionals, because family members and other ‘lay people’ willContinue reading “Tips for statement writing: What lawyers really think when they read a statement”