Discussing care plans within court proceedings: part 2 – the nitty gritty

This is the follow up post to my last one on the topic of care planning discussions whilst Court of Protection proceedings are ongoing. You can read that post here. We’re not talking about Z today, but about U. U is in her 40s and has been diagnosed with a number of complex mental healthContinue reading “Discussing care plans within court proceedings: part 2 – the nitty gritty”

Discussing care plans within court proceedings: part 1 – the broad brush

I am surprised by how often with my job I find myself in a situation where everyone round the table has a different idea of what the court’s role is when discussing care planning. I am talking predominantly about cases where there is some kind of dispute about a care plan, for example, where thereContinue reading “Discussing care plans within court proceedings: part 1 – the broad brush”

Reflections on informed consent

This is an issue I’ve been thinking about recently. I’ve had some health issues of my own which have resulted in more interactions with medical professionals than I’d like. No offence is intended to medical professionals and I’m glad they’re there, it’s just that I very much prefer my life when I don’t need toContinue reading “Reflections on informed consent”

About face: changing your position during Court of Protection proceedings part 3

This is the third post in a series about changing your mind during Court of Protection proceedings. If you’ve not read parts 1 and 2, feel free to do so. But I’ll briefly recap the scenario too. Essentially, my client was in a care home, suffering from dementia and objecting to her residence there. HerContinue reading “About face: changing your position during Court of Protection proceedings part 3”

About face: changing your position during Court of Protection proceedings – part 2

In this series of posts, I’m exploring how to approach a situation if, during Court of Protection proceedings, the professionals views about what I’d viable or what is in P’s best interests. It happens sometimes, and it’s inconvenient and difficult to navigate. But not impossible to achieve. I’m using an example from my recent casesContinue reading “About face: changing your position during Court of Protection proceedings – part 2”

About face: changing your position during Court of Protection proceedings – part 1

I want to talk about a relatively common occurrence that occurs during Court of Protection proceedings: changing the professional recommendations. In writing this I’ve realised I have a lot to say on this topic so I’ve broken it down into 4 parts. To start us off, I’ll set the scene. In one of my casesContinue reading “About face: changing your position during Court of Protection proceedings – part 1”

An urgent move during Court of Protection proceedings: a how (not) to guide

It is inevitable that sometimes in Court of Protection proceedings, there will be times when a move needs to take place urgently. There are any number of reasons why this might happen: arrangements in the community breakdown, safeguarding issues happen, risks increase and sometimes, a really good placement comes up which will be lost toContinue reading “An urgent move during Court of Protection proceedings: a how (not) to guide”

How the court decides best interests: when it comes down to it

I have broken down the stages of the process of reaching a best interests determination through the Court of Protection in a series of posts on this topic. If you’ve come across this post without reading the previous three posts, then you might want to start at the beginning and work your way through I’llContinue reading “How the court decides best interests: when it comes down to it”

How the court decides on best interests: part 2 What about this?

In part 1 of this series we looked at how to identify the available options, by talking about P and his future residence and care. The court is satisfied that there are currently 3 available options, Blue Care Home, Yellow Cottage supported living and Q’s house (his sister) with care from Pink Care Agency. SoContinue reading “How the court decides on best interests: part 2 What about this?”

How the court decides best interests: part 1 What are my options?

I wanted to offer some practical insights on how the Court of Protection makes decisions about what is in a person’s (always referred to as P) best interests. Because it sounds simple, but it isn’t. And I’ve spoken to so many professionals and family members who are so clear that they are advocating for P’sContinue reading “How the court decides best interests: part 1 What are my options?”