A Local Authority v A [2020] EWCOP 76

Covert medication - closed proceedings This application was to consider the administration to A of covert medication in relation to primary ovarian failure. (1) It was permissible and proportionate for A's mother not to be informed of the proceedings because she would seek to subvert the medical treatment. (2) The advantages (to achieve adulthood via puberty, the possibility of developing her own family, cognitive development and maturity, proportionate independence and personal autonomy, a hundred percent effectiveness, no associated risk, a normal life expectancy, no death by a serious fracture or cardiovascular disease by 30 to 40 years of age, and the fact that covert administration is the least restrictive approach pursuant to the MCA 2005) outweighed the disadvantages (it was against A's current wishes, if A discovered that she had been covertly medicated she might lose trust or confidence with the placement) and it was in A's best interests to receive the treatment.