The Mental Capacity Act 2005

Robert Brown is a Visiting Fellow at Bournemouth University and was a Founding Director of Edge Training and Consultancy Limited. He was a Mental Health Act Commissioner from 1992 until 2010. He provides refresher training for Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs) and Best Interest Assessors (BIAs) and contributes to the training of section 12 approved doctors and Approved Clinicians in South West England and Wales. He provides consultation and supervision for the AMHPs/BIAs in the Deprivation of Liberty Team in Cornwall. Rob also provides consultation to Lead AMHPs in Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Lambeth, Portsmouth and West Berkshire. He has published widely in the field of mental health and mental capacity law. Paul Barber qualified in 1976. Until December 2003 he was a partner at Bevan Ashford Solicitors (now Bevan Brittan) where for many years he led the firm’s NHS Litigation Department, increasingly specialising in the field of Mental Health and Human Rights law. He is now a Consultant to the firm and a freelance trainer and lecturer. He is extensively involved in training Approved Social Workers and lecturing on Section 12 Approval courses for doctors. He also provides training for the Mental Health Act Commission and numerous NHS Trusts and Health Authorities. Debbie Martin is a guest lecturer for the Swansea University Approved Mental Health Professional programme. She is also involved in the training of section 12 Approval and Approved Clinician courses, and provides training to various NHS Trusts, Health Authorities, Health Boards and Local Authorities. She has published in the field of mental health and mental capacity law. She is a registered social worker, and has practised as a social worker, a mental health manager and an Approved Mental Health Professional.

Background to the Mental Capacity Act 2005
The Key Features of the Mental Capacity Act 2005
The Code of Practice (Sections 42-43)
Principles (Section 1)
What Is Lack of Capacity? (Sections 2 and 3)
Best Interests (Section 4)
Protection for Those Making Decisions (Sections 5 to 8)
Lasting Powers of Attorney (Sections 9 to 14 and 22-23)
Deputies and Declarations (Sections 15 to 21)
Advance Decisions to Refuse Treatment (Sections 24 to 26)
Independent Mental Capacity Advocates (IMCAs) (Sections 35 to 41)
The Court of Protection and the Public Guardian (sections 45 to 61)
Other Issues
Research
Links with Other Areas of Law
Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards
The Interface between the Mental Capacity Act and the Mental Health Act
The Distinction between Restriction of Movement and Deprivation of Liberty
Appendix: 1 The Mental Capacity Act 2005
Appendix: 1A DOLS Regulations on Representative
Appendix: 1B DOLS Assessment Regulations
Appendix: 2 Helping people to make their own decisions
Appendix: 3 Assessing capacity
Appendix: 4 Best interests checklist
Appendix: 5 Multiple choice answers
Appendix: 6 Lasting Powers of Attorney and advance decisions
Appendix: 7 Identifying a Deprivation of liberty
Appendix: 8 The DOLS procedures