The Court of Protection deals with health, welfare, financial and property affairs for people who lack the mental capacity to make decisions for themselves. The Court of Protection has other powers such as appointing deputies, handling emergency applications to decide about a family member and makes decisions about when a family member can be deprived of their liberty under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA).
Family members often assume they can automatically take care of matters on behalf of someone if they become unable to do so themselves. However, individuals are required to put a Power of Attorney in place by choosing an Attorney or Attorneys who they would like to handle their health and welfare, property, and financial affairs on their behalf. This must be created by the individual whilst they have the mental capacity under the MCA. The MCA states that an individual is unable to make a decision if they are not able to do the following.
Understand the information relevant to the decision
Retain that information
Use or weigh up that information as part of the process of making the decision
Furthermore, the MCA states that individuals may not have the capacity to make one decision but may still have the capacity to make other less complex decisions.
Where an individual does not have Power of Attorney already in place and that individual has lost mental capacity, family members can apply to the Court of Protection to become a Deputy so that they may have the right to make decisions on behalf of the individual. There is the option of having a solicitor or an accountant that can be paid to act as the individual’s deputy. Where there is no one available to become deputy, the Court of Protection can appoint a Panel Deputy to make decisions on behalf of an individual.
