The Law Society welcomes report on Mental Capacity Act concerns

The Law Society today issued a press release welcoming the publication by the House of Lords of a highly critical report on the implementation of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

The report of the specially convened Scrutiny Committee criticises the controversial Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards regime, commenting that evidence suggests that ‘thousands, if not tens of thousands, of individuals are being deprived of their liberty without the protection of the law’.

The Committee concludes that the safeguards are not fit for purpose and that a new statutory framework is needed to prevent further injustices.

Sophy Miles of Miles & Partners LLP, Chair of the Law Society’s Mental Health and Disability Committee said:

“The Law Society is pleased that the House of Lords has listened to the wealth of evidence it received. We will be looking to the government to implement these important recommendations.  Given that the liberty of highly vulnerable people is at stake, this has to be given priority even in times of austerity.”

The Law Society supports the Committee’s key recommendations, especially that people who lack the capacity to make decisions for themselves should get  non-means tested legal aid in deprivation of liberty cases.

A full copy of the report can be accessed by clicking here,

The contents of this article are for the purposes of general awareness only. They do not purport to constitute legal or professional advice. The law may have changed since this article was published. Readers should not act on the basis of the information included and should take appropriate professional advice upon their own particular circumstances.