Legal Services
Mental Capacity & Deputyship Specialists
The Court of Protection is a specialist court which appoints deputies to look after the financial affairs and welfare of people who are mentally incapacitated.
The deputy may be either:
- A lay deputy – a close relative or friend, or
- A professional deputy – a solicitor with experience of deputyship work.
The deputy makes investment and spending decisions, must always act in the client’s best interests and must keep accounts. The deputy is supervised by the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) and must file an annual report and accounts with the OPG. Contact the team for a consultation
Did you know?
We can assist with the application to appoint a deputy, advising deputies generally and acting as professional deputy.
Deputyship for the Elderly and clients with a learning disability or mental health problems
We act as deputies for a variety of vulnerable clients who lack capacity, including:
- Elderly clients suffering from memory loss or confusion;
- Clients with a learning disability;
- Clients with mental health problems;
- Clients with addiction problems;
- Clients who are vulnerable to financial abuse.
Hodge Jones & Allen Solicitors is ranked for this area of law in the Legal 500 and is very experienced in handling such cases. We welcome instructions from families where a relative is likely to need help in the administration of their affairs and understand the extra sensitivity and communication skills needed when acting for vulnerable clients.
Our Mental Capacity solicitors deal with a range of cases such as:
- Deputyships
- Deputyship Expert Witness Evidence
- Personal Injury Trusts
- Statutory Wills
Why Hodge Jones & Allen?
A personal and sympathetic service
We offer a very personal and sympathetic service – we are a small team and we value our relationships with clients highly.
Communication
We provide an efficient service, always responding promptly to any questions and keeping you updated.
Highly Experienced
We are highly experienced in this specialist area and offer high quality advice and pragmatic and cost effective solutions to difficult problems.
Dementia Case Study
Our client, an elderly widow, suffers from dementia and had been found wandering the local streets unable to find her way home. Her social worker discovered that she had started to invest unwisely following approaches by cold callers and therefore she was vulnerable to financial exploitation. The Local Authority appointed Hodge Jones & Allen Solicitors to act as her Deputy, to take over her finances to safeguard her from financial exploitation and to arrange payment for the support she needed. The Deputy continues to manage all of her income, investments and expenditure.
How to appoint a deputy
First meeting
We explain the process and gather all the information required by the court. We explain how the deputyship will work in practice and the duties of the deputy.
Court application
We prepare the application to the Court of Protection. This includes obtaining a report from an expert confirming that the clients lacks sufficient mental capacity to manage their finances.
Serving notices
Once the application has been issued, we serve notices on family members and arrange personal service on the client. Confirmation of service is filed with the court.
Security bond
We take out insurance to cover the actions of the deputy.
Deputyship order
The court then issue the deputyship order.
View all Frequently Asked Questions.