Need to know

• The Court of Protection decides who can make decisions for someone who can’t manage their own affairs.

• A diagnosis doesn’t automatically remove legal capacity.

• High street firms step in when there’s no Lasting Power of Attorney, helping families apply for deputyship and court authority.

Welcome to TSL’s Weekly Edge, whether you’re aiming for a regional or high-street practice, or just want to get a feel for how law works in the real world beyond textbooks, you’re in the right place. 

No corporate jargon, no massive deals, just real useful information designed to give you that extra edge in your legal journey.

🧠Wilson’s Weekly Wisdom

The funny thing about growing as a trainee, is your instincts get sharper, but your self doubt loves to sneak into the spotlight. You think through every angle, ask a colleague for a sense check, and surprise surprise they confirm exactly what your gut said at the start.

That instinct isn’t random. It’s your experience quietly doing the maths for you. I’ve learnt that when your gut gives you an answer, jot it down before you overthink. If you keep circling back to it, that is your judgment settling into place.

You already double check when needed which shows you handle decisions responsibly. Now it is about letting your instincts have more of the spotlight.

💡Spotlight Article

A stroke. Cognitive decline creeping in. A head injury upending everything. Suddenly, it’s not just admin that’s hard.

You’re legally stuck. You can’t sell the house, access the money, or agree to care because, in the law’s eyes, they can’t make those decisions anymore.

🔎What’s happening? 

The above calls for a specialist court, in this case, the Court of Protection (The Court), to get involved.

It steps in to decide who’s allowed to make decisions and, sometimes, makes those decisions itself for people who can’t under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

Worth saying this first:

“Capacity” isn’t a straight line, and it doesn’t care about labels.

Having a diagnosed illness doesn’t automatically mean you lack legal capacity. The Court looks at one thing above all else. In this situation, can this person make this specific decision?

Now someone might be perfectly fine handling day-to-day spending, but not able to deal with big sums, sign contracts, decide where they should live, or weigh up serious medical treatment.

When families and carers start disagreeing with each other, with professionals, or even with the person themselves, the Court steps in as the referee.

What does it do?

Quite a lot, actually!

It can:

• Settle rows about money, care, or where someone lives.

• Make calls on serious medical treatment.

• Appoint a deputy to manage finances.

• Approve the sale or management of property and major assets.

And that’s only part of the picture.

Everything it does is meant to be in the person’s best interests. Sounds straightforward, but as it turns out, that’s where the real arguments usually start!

❓ Why it matters to high street firms

Court of Protection work is legitimate high street law in the real world. It’s rarely planned, never tidy, and nearly always urgent.

This is the stuff that starts with a panicked phone call or a frozen bank account and ends with decisions about who gets to make life-changing calls for someone who no longer can.

• Deputyship applications aren’t optional: Banks, pension providers, and care homes won’t touch family members without legal authority. No Lasting Power of Attorney, and capacity’s already gone? The Court is the only way through. High street firms are the ones doing the forms, explaining the delays, and breaking the news that this isn’t a quick win.

• Safeguarding problems hide inside “admin”: The Court keeps a close eye on deputies and steps in when money’s being misused. Often it’s a local solicitor who spots the warning signs first. A relative draining funds, rows over care fees, and decisions being made without permission. What looks like dull paperwork can turn serious fast.

• Health and welfare rows get real very quickly: Arguments over where someone lives, whom they see, or what treatment they get don’t stay theoretical for long. These aren’t academic debates. Someone’s dignity, safety, and quality of life are on the line, and solicitors must get the law right without losing sight of the human cost.

Strip it all back, and you’ll realise this is where private client law stops being neat wills and probate and turns into full-blown crisis management.

Mental Capacity

It’s about whether someone can legally make a particular decision at a particular time.

The test is simple: can they understand it, weigh it up, and communicate a decision?

And yes, someone can lack capacity for one decision but not another!