Disentangling mental capacity and First Tier Mental Health Tribunal
By Michael Kennedy
An article I co-authored for Cambridge University Press and the Royal College of Psychiatrists was published this week. It was entitled ‘Disentangling capacity and the First-tier Tribunal: bringing case law into clinical practice’ and can be found on their website. My co-authors were Zumer Arif Jawaid (a consultant in old age psychiatry from St Mary’s Hospital, Leeds) and Nick Brindle (retired consultant psychiatrist and author of numerous medico-legal texts such as The Clinician’s Guide to The Mental Health Act).
The learning objectives of the article were for readers to be able to:
- Understand how to approach applications to the tribunal for patients detained in hospital
- Differentiate between capacity to bring and capacity to conduct proceedings
- Decide when to consider use of section 67 of the Mental Health Act
As always, I found it very rewarding to contribute to a piece of work that showcases some of the latest thinking in the area of Mental Health and Capacity Law, working alongside some highly-experienced specialists.
If you need advice on any aspects of Mental Health or Mental Capacity Law, call us on 0800 138 0458 or email help@switalskis.com
Michael has worked in the legal sector for 30 years. He is a Director and Barrister in our Court of Protection Health and Welfare department.
