Court of Protection Lead at Anthony Collins Solicitors contributes to latest guidance for doctors and lawyers on assessing mental capacity

This publication supports Doctors, lawyers and other professionals who may need to assess a person’s mental capacity, for example to make a will or a Lasting Power of Attorney or to make other key decisions for themselves.

At Anthony Collins Solicitos, we work alongside men and women who, for a number of different reasons, may struggle to make certain decisions for themselves. We recognise that a diagnosis such as dementia or the onset of a mental illness can cause great stress and anxiety, and lead to a fear of loss of independence or control over their own life.

Mental capacity is the ability to make decisions for yourself. People who cannot make their own decisions are said to ‘lack capacity’, whether their difficulty is due to an injury, a learning disability, mental health problem or a condition such as dementia that may affect the way a person’s brain makes decisions.

A person may have the capacity to make some decisions but not others.

With appropriate support and advice, at Anthony Collins Solicitors we know that individuals with impaired or fluctuating capacity may nevertheless still be able to make important decisions for themselves, to prepare for an uncertain future.

A client may not have the necessary mental capacity to manage their own complex financial affairs, and yet they may have the capacity to appoint individuals they trust to manage their finances on their behalf, by making a Lasting Power of Attorney.

Sheree Green was delighted to be invited to share her expertise in this area by contributing to the updating of two key chapters to this new handbook; “Capacity to deal with financial affairs” and “Practical guidelines for lawyers”.

If you or a family member are considering making a Lasting Power of Attorney, please contact Donna Holmes or another member of our specialist mental capacity team on 0121 212 7404.

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