Managing your client’s property and financial affairs as a professional deputy is a highly specialist and challenging task which requires a detailed understanding of every aspect of your client’s life and will often touch on other legal areas, including the need to secure appropriate care. At MJC Law we understand the complexity of the professional deputy’s role and we can assist with all issues relating to your client’s health, welfare and care needs.
The professional deputy’s role includes the need to explore the availability of statutory funding to meet a client’s care needs, to take steps to ensure that a client’s deprivation of liberty is appropriately authorised, and to bring other welfare-related matters to the attention of the Court of Protection.
At MJC Law, we have extensive experience of advising on the rights of individuals to access health and social care funding and support. We hold contracts with the Legal Aid Agency in both community care and mental health, enabling us to secure legal aid funding for eligible clients in welfare Court of Protection proceedings, judicial review proceedings and in mental health tribunals.
We can help you, your client, or their family members with the following matters:
- Statutory funding: social care, NHS Continuing Healthcare (for adults), Continuing Care (for children and young people), and s117 MHA 1983 “aftercare” funding:
- Advice on your client’s eligibility for statutory funding following receipt of a personal injury compensation award;
- Direct payments and personal health budgets;
- Challenging refusals to assess; insufficient care packages; and decisions to stop or reduce care packages;
- NHS Continuing Healthcare reviews and representation at appeals.
- Deprivation of liberty safeguards:
- Whether an authorisation is necessary, the appropriate mechanism, and the extent of your duty as deputy;
- Advice and representation in proceedings relating to a deprivation of liberty authorisation. Your client may be eligible for non-means tested legal aid and we can secure this where appropriate.
- Personal welfare deputyships:
- Advice on the likelihood of success;
- Preparation of the application documents and representation in subsequent proceedings;
- Transitioning from children’s to adult’s social care
- Safeguarding duties
- Other health and welfare issues in the Court of Protection:
- Advice and representation in all types of welfare applications before the Court of Protection.
- Mental health:
- Advice on any issue under the Mental Health Act 1983 (“MHA”);
- Representation before the Tribunal for anyone subject to the MHA;
- Assistance at CPA meetings and Hospital Managers meetings for those subject to the MHA.
- General health and welfare reviews:
- We can review your client’s file to identify any steps that you may need to take to seek additional statutory funding or to ensure a deprivation of liberty is appropriately authorised.
- Expert witness statements:
- Preparation of expert witness statements in medical negligence and personal injury claims to support the cost of future personal welfare issues being met from your client’s damages.
We can provide training to you and your teams on any of the above matters.
We have experience of providing quotations to assist with applications pursuant to Acc & Ors [2020] EWCOP 9.
If you would like to discuss how we may be able to help you, your client or their family member, please contact us.
