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Mental Health Law Online
The internet resource on mental health law, and mental capacity law, for England & Wales. You can sign up for free email updates, the online forum and the CPD scheme (which provides 12 hours for £60 and is suitable for lawyers and non-lawyers). The abbreviations are similar but MHLO, MHLA and MHLR are all different.
The main content of this website has been divided into Case law (2352), Legislation (380) and Resources (1,036), together with separate Information pages (328) to link everything together.
Forum topics
Contacts
The Magic Book is a database of contact details which currently contains 304 pages.
News and updates
All the latest updates to the website can be seen on on the MHLO updates forum category. The five most recent appear here.
- 02/09/24: Case (Section 117 reimbursement). Kent County Council (23 012 780) [2024] MHLO 1 (LGSCO) — The council (having initially ignored a complaint) repaid £114,721.36 which had wrongly been charged between 2002 and 2021 and (having initally paid no interest) agreed to pay £17,368.50 interest, and was directed to pay £700 to remedy distress and £300 to acknowledge the time and trouble pursuing the complaint.
- 02/09/24: Case (Capacity and Article 14 other status). Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council v Mailley [2023] EWCA Civ 1246 — This housing law case considered capacity and "other status" in an Article 14 discrimination claim.
- 02/09/24: Mental health Legal Aid form. Legal Aid Agency, 'Form CW 1&2 MH' (v20, September 2024) — The LAA website update dated 1/9/24 states: "CW1&2 MH and CWC MH updated to reference the 2024 Standard Civil Contract." Note that para 3.12 of the 2018 Standard Civil Contract Specification states: "We may amend the Application Forms from time to time upon giving at least 28 days' notice to you." At the very least (if the website update counts as contractual notice) they will have to accept the old version for 28 days after 1/9/24.
- 26/07/24: Minutes. COP User Group, 'Meeting (P and A): Minutes and action points' (10/7/24) — Minutes and action points from meeting
- 18/07/24: Mental capacity law newsletter. 39 Essex Chambers, 'Mental Capacity Report' (issue 142, July 2024) — "Highlights this month include: (1) In the Health, Welfare and Deprivation of Liberty Report: sexual capacity complexities, wishes and feelings in the balance, and finding the P in a PDOC case; (2) In the Property and Affairs Report: deputy bond provider problems and a job opportunity in the Official Solicitor's office; (3) In the Practice and Procedure Report: how far can the Court of Protection go to ensure its orders are complied with, and risk taking, best interests and health and welfare deputies; (4) In the Mental Health Matters Report: Tier 4 beds (again) and the Mental Health Tribunal and the Parole Board; (5) In the Wider Context Report: local authority consent to confinement, the Irish courts continue to grapple with the consequences of the framework, and Strasbourg pronounces on assisted dying; (6) In the Scotland Report: exasperation at the pace of the Scottish Government's Mental Health and Capacity Reform Programme."
Consultations
No open consultations.
To do
Things that will end up with their own MHLO pages, when I have time...
- 05/09/24: TPC minutes 2 May and 6 June 2024 https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/tribunal-procedure-committee/about
- 03/09/24: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/the-2024-standard-civil-contract-now-live
- 03/09/24: Seabrooke Manor Ltd, R (On the Application Of) v Care Quality Commission [2024] EWHC 2203 (Admin)B (27 August 2024)
- 31/08/24: AA, Re (Costs) [2024] EWCOP 44 (T3)B (28 August 2024)
- 29/08/24: Upload explanatory note to Powers of Attorney Act 2023
- 27/08/24: As of 2024, Neutral Citation Numbers for judgments of the Court of Protection include suffixes to identify the level of the judge issuing the judgment (e.g., [2024] EWCOP XX (T1)): https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCOP/
- 24/08/24: An NHS Trust v Mother & Ors [2024] EWHC 2207 (Fam)B (22 August 2024) - Parental consent to medical treatment
- 24/08/24: E v The Child and Family Agency of Ireland & Ors [2024] EWHC 1778 (Fam)B (09 July 2024) ? ("The impact of the order, in Ireland, is to authorise E's detention in a special care unit; authorise E's release for the purposes specified in the order") †
- 24/08/24: Hemachandran & Anor v Thirumalesh & Anor [2024] EWCA Civ 896B (31 July 2024) - capacity and belief †
- 24/08/24: NHS Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board (23 015 902b) - LGSCO - "We will not investigate Miss Y’s complaints. She has already appealed the decision to detain her under Section 3 of the Mental Health Act to the First Tier Tribunal (Mental Health). Also, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman is better placed to consider her complaints about transfer between hospitals and care and treatment under Section 3." https://www.lgo.org.uk/decisions/health/mental-health-services/23-015-902b
Email updates
Choose occasional and/or monthly update emails. To sign up, please go to the email updates subscription page.
CPD
The CPD scheme is primarily aimed at mental health solicitors, and is an ideal way to evidence your continued competence, but is also suitable for barristers, psychiatrists, social workers and psychiatric nurses. For £60, you can obtain 12 CPD credits.
Jobs
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Events
Books
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