Capacity – what’s it all about?

Something that you probably take for granted, right? Deciding where to live, deciding who to bank with, choosing your mortgage and bill providers, buying a car, investing your money; things you will do day in, day out without a second thought.

Of course, you/your loved one probably thought about drafting a Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) but perhaps you never got around to it or you didn’t think you would need to. Life moves quickly but so too does change.

So what happens if you lose capacity or what if your loved one does? What next? Who is going to help you pay your bills? What will happen to your investments? Who decides where you should live? So many questions, where do you find the answers?

For those of you reading this without an LPA or worrying about a loved one who you think may have lost or may be losing capacity, there is a legal process in place to protect you via the Court of Protection (which isn’t as scary as it sounds, I promise).

This process can only begin once you have been assessed as having lost capacity. Capacity is not only a complicated issue but it varies from person to person depending on the event leading to them losing capacity and it also impacts everyone differently.

Within the process, the Court will appoint a deputy (either a professional or someone you would trust i.e. family member) on your behalf to manage your property and financial affairs. Welfare deputies are rarer but if you did need one, this is an available avenue too.

It stands to reason that if you need someone to help you manage your finances or make decisions on your behalf it not only needs to be someone you can trust, but also someone who can dedicate the time to doing so for you.

At Jackson Lees, we have a dedicated and experienced Court of Protection team who act as both professional deputy and assist lay deputies with everything from completing the applications to ensuring ongoing compliance with the obligations and duties of a deputy.

We have experience of acting for clients of all ages, who have lost capacity for a range of reasons – from birth injuries, through to brain injuries and conditions ailments such as dementia or Alzheimer’s.

Understandably, there is a cost to having a professional deputy, but our team would be able to gather all the relevant circumstances and sign post you accordingly as to what is likely going to be the necessary route to pursue.

Over the course of the next few articles, we will explore relevant topics in further details including how a deputy is appointed, capacity, duties of a deputy, money deriving from PI claims and writing statutory wills.

If you can’t wait that long or have a specific question you would like some guidance on, please do not hesitate to contact our specialist Court of Protection team (please click here for a call back or message us your enquiry) where one of our highly trained and knowledgeable staff members will be able to provide you with that much needed advice.

We look forward to connecting with you in future articles.