Daedalus, Ariadne and the Minotaur: Where are we now? – Family Law Week

‘Alex Laing of Coram Chambers re-visits the use of the inherent jurisdiction to deprive children of their liberty in the light of recent judgments.’

Full Story

Family Law Week, 15th May 2018

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Analysing the Government response to the review of the law on deprivation of liberty – Family Law

Posted April 25th, 2018 in deprivation of liberty safeguards, Law Commission, news by sally

‘Local Government analysis: On 14 March 2018, the Government’s final response to the Law Commission review of the law on deprivation of liberty was published, which broadly agrees with most of the proposals, and more significantly, agrees to replace the current Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) system. Ben Troke, partner at Browne Jacobson LLP, discusses the Government’s proposals and assesses whether they go far enough, as well as the likely timescales involved in implementing them.’

Full Story

Family Law, 23rd April 2018

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

Government to legislate for replacement of Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards – Local Government Lawyer

‘The government has said this month that it broadly agrees with the Liberty Protection Safeguards model proposed by the Law Commission to replace the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards.’

Full Story

Local Government Lawyer, 21st March 2018

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Deprivation of liberty and administration of medication by a local authority to a child – Zenith Chambers

‘Local Government analysis: Louise McCallum, barrister, and Emily Ross, pupil barrister, both of Zenith Chambers, Leeds, consider the case of T (A Child: Care Order: Beyond Parental Control: Deprivation of Liberty: Authority to Administer Medication), which dealt with issues of deprivation of liberty and administration of medication by a local authority to a child.’

Full Story

Zenith Chambers, 1st March 2018

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

Guidance on Art 5 compliance when a child in local authority care is deprived of their liberty – Family Law

‘In Re A-F (Children) (Care Orders: Restrictions on Liberty) [2018] EWHC 138 (Fam) the court gave guidance on when Art 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) is engaged in relation to a child in the care of the local authority, and the procedures necessary to ensure the deprivation of liberty is lawful.’

Full Story

Family Law, 13th March 2018

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

Judicial Authorisation of Deprivation of Liberty – 39 Essex Chambers

‘A procedure has been established by the courts to enable the authorisation of the deprivation of liberty of an individual over the age of 16 who lacks capacity to consent to their confinement. This procedure, usually called the Re X procedure after the decision of Re X and others (Deprivation of Liberty) [2014] EWCOP 25 (and No 2 [2014] EWCOP 37), can be used in any setting where the DOLS authorisation procedure in Schedule A1 to the MCA 2005 cannot be used, and also where the person is between the age of 16 and 18.’

Full Story

39 Essex Chambers, December 2017

Source: www.39essex.com

Court of Appeal Overturns Birmingham CC v D: 16-17 Year Olds Who Lack Capacity Not Deprived of Their Liberty Within Art 5 Where Parents Consent to Their Confinement – Garden Court Chambers

‘This is the appeal from the decision of Keehan J in Birmingham CC v D [2016] EWCOP 8.’

Full Story

Garden Court Chambers, 10th November 2017

Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk

Government starts work on Law Commission health care and mental capacity recommendations – Law Commission

‘The Government has launched a new consultation looking at the regulation of health care professionals, based on recommendations from a 2014 report by the UK Law Commissions.’

Full press release

Law Commission, 1st November 2017

Source: www.lawcom.gov.uk/

Mental Capacity and Deprivation of Liberty: Law Commission Report Summary – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

‘Thousands of vulnerable people with dementia and learning disabilities are being detained in hospitals and care homes without the appropriate checks, due to a law unfit for purpose according to the Law Commission.’

Full story

Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 13th March 2017

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

People with dementia ‘failed’ by deprivation of liberty law – BBC News

‘People with dementia and learning difficulties are being detained in care without checks due to a ‘failing’ law, the Law Commission has said.’

Full story

BBC News, 13th March 2017

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Court of Appeal delivers landmark ruling in ‘state detention’ inquest case – Local Government Lawyer

‘A woman with a learning disability who died whilst in the intensive care unit of a hospital was not in ‘state detention’, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 27th January 2017

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

The Mental Capacity Act 2005: an opportune time to reflect – OUP Blog

‘More than a decade has passed since the Mental Capacity Act (‘MCA’) received royal assent. Described as a ‘visionary piece of legislation’, the MCA was a significant landmark on the legal landscape. It represented a triumph of autonomy by recognising that, as far as possible, people should play an active role in decisions about their welfare. At the core of the MCA is the fundamental principle that a person must be assumed to have decision making capacity unless it is established that he lacks it. The law therefore assumes that everyone has the ability to act and take decisions in accordance with their own interests, and affords primacy to individual priorities over paternalistic imperatives. Where a person lacks capacity – whether for reasons of learning disability, dementia, brain injury, or some other impairment of or disturbance in the functioning of the mind or brain – the MCA permits decision-makers to act on behalf of the person in accordance with his ‘best interests’. This means that, amongst other things, decision-makers must take into account the person’s past and present wishes and feelings, his beliefs and values, and any other factors that the person would be likely to consider, in order to act in a way which would likely give expression to the person’s autonomy. In this way, the MCA sought to empower people to make decisions for themselves, protect the vulnerable from the excesses of paternalism, and engineer a cultural shift in attitudes to mental impairment and incapacity.’

Full story

OUP Blog, 17th January 2017

Source: www.blog.oup.com

Deprivation of liberty under scrutiny at Court of Appeal – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Two years after a Supreme Court landmark ruling led to a surge in applications by local authorities for deprivations of liberty under the Mental Capacity Act, the Court of Appeal is to rule on whether a patient in intensive care can be considered to be in state detention.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 14th December 2016

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Holocaust survivor: care home feels like being back in concentration camp – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 2nd, 2016 in care homes, deprivation of liberty safeguards, elderly, news, restraint by sally

‘Holocaust survivor who said living in a care home reminded her of being back in a Nazi concentration camp has been given special permission by a court to return home despite her frail condition.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 1st December 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Care home residents deprived of liberty in record numbers – The Guardian

‘Record numbers of care home residents are being deprived of their liberty by being put in straps, locked in or given behaviour-controlling drugs, fuelling fears that some are being mistreated.’

Full story

The Guardian, 28th September 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Court of Protection judge criticises firm for ‘brutal and insensitive’ comments – Law Society’s Gazette

‘A north-west firm is considering appealing a Court of Protection ruling in which it was removed as a financial deputy in a case concerning deprivation of liberty and care arrangements.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 19th August 2016

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Staffordshire County Council v K and others – WLR Daily

Staffordshire County Council v K and others [2016] EWCOP 27

‘An incapacitated adult (“K”), who had been severely injured in a road traffic accident, was awarded substantial damages in court proceedings which were used by his property and affairs deputy, a private trust corporation, to provide a specially adapted residence and to fund the regime of care and support provided by private sector providers. The local authority, having been informed of the arrangements for K’s care and the arrangements having been registered with the Care Quality Commission, applied to the Court of Protection for a welfare order under section 16 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The parties accepted that the arrangements constituted a deprivation of liberty satisfying two of three components of a deprivation of liberty within article 5 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, but the Secretary of State contended that the third component, namely the attribution of responsibility to the state, did not apply to the privately funded and arranged care regime (and to others in an equivalent position), so that the care regime could lawfully be put in place without a welfare order being made under the Act.’

WLR Daily, 25th May 2016

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Judge challenges government over legal representation for vulnerable people – The Guardian

‘A senior judge has challenged the government to provide legal representation for vulnerable people as a backlog of safeguarding cases that cannot be tried builds up in the court of protection.’

Full story

The Guardian, 10th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Mental Capacity Law Newsletter – 39 Essex Chambers

Mental Capacity Law Newsletter (PDF)

39 Essex Chambers, November 2015

Source: www.39essex.com

Inquests & Deprivation of Liberty – No. 5 Chambers

Posted September 4th, 2015 in care homes, deprivation of liberty safeguards, detention, hospitals, inquests, news by sally

‘In December 2014, the Chief Coroner issued guidance as the approach to be taken when someone dies at a time when they are deprived of their liberty under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA 2005). Its effect is yet to be seen.’

Full story

No. 5 Chambers, 2nd September 2015

Source: www.no5.com