District Judge Gordon Ashton examines capacity & the courts, through the pages of Atkin’s Court Forms
Until recently, few lawyers became involved in mental capacity issues. They were seen as mental health problems and the Court of Protection was viewed as a mysterious world that was best avoided. The 1985 issue of Atkin’s Court Forms Volume 26 entitled Mental Health combined in a single volume the practice in the Court of Protection and Mental Health Review Tribunals with that in High Court and County Court proceedings where a party lacked capacity to litigate. These topics extended to a mere 270 pages and there was little change for the 1992 issue.
Past issues
When I was asked to contribute the High Court and County Court content for the 1996 issue it was apparent to me that the existing material merely repeated the court rules and practice directions with little guidance as to implementation. I attempted to address the assessment of capacity and the basis of decision-making in the context of the questions “When is a person a patient?” and “How do you conduct the affairs
