The Court of Protection is a specialist court that was set up under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to appoint people to act on behalf of those who no longer have the capacity to do so themselves.
It can decide whether a person has capacity to make certain decisions for themselves and appoint a deputy to make those decisions.
Applying to be a deputy
A person can also apply to be a deputy for someone else, as long as they are aged 18 or over. They tend to be close friends or relatives who know the person who needs help well, but if there is no one, the court can pay professionals such as solicitors, accountants or local authority representatives to make financial decisions. The Court can also appoint what is known as a panel deputy, taken from an approved list.
Be prepared
In order to avoid your affairs being taken over by someone you don’t know well, it is a good idea to register a Lasting Power of Attorney when you still have mental capacity. This allows you to choose one or more people who you trust to act as attorney for either your financial and property affairs or health and wellbeing. It is easy to set up an LPA online, and there are several specialist companies, such as https://powerofattorneyonline.co.uk/, that you can engage to do it.
When there is no LPA, the Court can appoint either one or several deputies to act for one person, who will then report to the court annually.
