“Liberty” in the Supreme Court “What about somebody who is so demented they’re effectively catatonic. Just spend the day in front of a television set. Is that person- In what sense does that person have any liberty which she can…

New blog post
By Eleanor Tallon

What does an experienced social worker and best interests assessor make of the Supreme Court hearing revisiting Cheshire West?

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/10/29/l...

DJ Clarke calls time on public body delay: Internet restrictions, consultation with deputies, and a rejection of judicial “micromanaging” By Daniel Clark, 16th May 2025 This case concerns XY: an autistic man in his twenties who lived an active and sociable life until a decline in his mental health. As described in an earlier blog pos…

Welfare deputies should always be consulted & will be the decision-maker for some decisions.
I’ve been a deputy for 15yrs & it’s crucial for supporting my brain-injured sister.
But disturbing case reveals how deputies were excluded openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/05/16/d...

Please share!

Public lecture - Mr Justice Nicklin - Open Justice: Fit for Purpose - Wednesday 4 June 2025 17:00 to 19:00
Location: Green Templeton College, University of Oxford
Speaker: The Honourable Mr Justice Nicklin

Register here: www.gtc.ox.ac.uk/news-and-eve...

Interesting piece for any doctor involved in Court of Protection hearings

Reflections on the Supreme Court’s judgment in Abbasi on the duration of reporting restrictions by Daniel Clark, 25th April 2025 On Wednesday 16th April 2025, the UK Supreme Court handed down judgment in two cases. One of them, For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers, has received a h…

My new blog for @openjusticecop.bsky.social on the recent Supreme Court judgment that considers when and how freedom of expression can justifiably be limited.

I think it has implications beyond life-sustaining treatment cases. What do you think?

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/04/25/r...

Reflections on the Supreme Court’s judgment in Abbasi on the duration of reporting restrictions by Daniel Clark, 25th April 2025 On Wednesday 16th April 2025, the UK Supreme Court handed down judgment in two cases. One of them, For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers, has received a h…

I've now written something about the judgment and I'll be interested to hear what you think. Please do consider leaving a comment on the blog (there are no character limits)

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/04/25/r...

In my view, it's absolutely right that the standard of justification for them is high. As the court notes, patient treatment is a matter of legitimate public interest.

We will write something @openjusticecop.bsky.social once we've all digested the judgment; we might not agree between ourselves

I have a lot of sympathy for these concerns, and the Supreme Court recognised them too - it accepts the use of injunctions during proceedings and doesn't completely rule out indefinite injunctions. That being said, indefinite injunctions are such a serious infringement of free expression

This is such great news! And this blog has some valuable learning points for professionals of almost every variety

Draconian reporting restrictions in a contempt of court case: Severing continuity between judgments By Amanda Hill and Claire Martin (with acknowlegment of significant input and support from Celia Kitzinger) A few months ago, we observed a committal hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice at which…

Draconian reporting restrictions in a contempt of court case: Severing continuity between judgments

By @doccmartin.bsky.social and @amandaaphill.bsky.social

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/04/07/d...

The judge in this hearing was full of praise for P's social worker, and I thought it was worth highlighting.

In the event I need a social worker fighting my corner, I hope it's someone like this

This is very worrying:

"Is the Court of Protection still sending family members to prison in secret? I don’t know for sure. But I suspect the answer is ‘yes’."

a compelling example of the dehumanising of someone who needs a health service, and his family, while the judge 'referees' the funding arguments

@thesmallplaces.bsky.social points out that the public bodies making best interests decision, rather than XY's mum (who's also his Health and Welfare) deputy), "seems like an example of bureaucratic overreach".

Have a read - it's some really interesting commentary

A very clear, comprehensive and thoughtful blog, thanks @clarkdaniel.bsky.social

I found @doccmartin.bsky.social's commentary on complaints very interesting.

Thank you!

Calling lawyers/academics: We'd love a blog addressing civil vs criminal standards of proof. This comes up a lot in discussions with families in COP hearings. Not much has been written about it. Please contact me if you're interested. (I found this: scholarship.law.cornell.edu/facpub/222/)

A young man failed by NHS South West London ICB and the London Borough of Wandsworth Working in the health service, I often hear families’ concerns or reasonable complaints framed as them being ‘anxious’ about their loved one’s care. I think it can be a manoeuvre to delegitimise th…

A lack of accountability for implementing best interests decisions. Family members being excluded. Failures to comply with court orders.

The inability of these public bodies to work together to help a young man is shocking

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/02/27/a...

P has capacity to decide to leave hospital – but there’s nowhere for him to go: Untangling capacity, “being on a DOLS”, and the care plan By Amanda Hill, 24th February 2025 P, the protected party in this case, is a young man in his twenties, with an acquired brain injury and a spinal injury that has caused paraplegia. He’s …

New blog post by @amandaaphill.bsky.social

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/02/23/p...

I think that's a sensible start. It can be coupled with ensuring that the signs (with adequate text size of course) don't just drop off halfway to the actual courtroom

Last October I was in London to investigate how accessible (or not) two court buildings are.

First Avenue House fared much better than the Royal Courts of Justice but both were plagued by small text on signs. Even a notice that said you could ask for documents in large print were in small print!

An interesting post. I’m not really sure what the solution is to the problems with the Royal Courts of Justice. Ever since the building opened, people have been making (well-founded) jokes about it being a maze. It was even mentioned in the LCJ’s opening speech. Or this example from later in 1883.

Thank you! I'm glad it wasn't just the eyes of a first time visitor who found it bewildering. My suspicion was that the maps are only helpful if you already know where you're going. Perhaps they're not even too much help then

Thank you! All these months later, I'm still surprised by just how small the signs are. Quite the oversight

Judge approves use of esketamine in anorexia case: Re CC By Elissa Novak, 3rd February 2025 Despite her own best efforts, and the support of her family and those involved in her care, a 21-year-old autistic woman diagnosed with depression and anorex…

New blog post from the Open Justice Court of Protection Project. Hayden J approves experimental treatment requested by woman with anorexia.

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/02/03/j...

Dispute about capacity and best interests in a s.21A application By Daniel Clark, 31st January 2025 Mr H has lived in A Care Home since 2022. He is challenging his deprivation of liberty, pursuant to s21a of the Mental Capacity Act 2005[i], but the responde…

The failure of parliament to take action on DoLS means that "the backlog [in processing applications] will grow and grow, and more and more people will be deprived of their liberty without adequate safeguards"

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2025/01/31/d...

The title page of Richard Wolin's 'Heidegger in Ruins: Between Philosophy and Ideology"

I'm a little late to reading this but it was worth the wait. It's an excellent book that rigorously pursues the evidence of Heidegger's commitment to Nazism. There's also engagement with Hannah Arendt's analysis of Heidegger without the unnecessary references to their relationship that others make

Thanks Oliver - I like that one! The others I've seen inevitably lead to the question of why all cases aren't heard by a panel (though I imagine that would lead to the British legal system completely and irreversibly breaking)

Fingers crossed they stay at a safe distance. Snakes also unsettle me - perhaps I need to build up the fortitude before considering a trip to Tasmania!

*Calling legal people*

Why does the Court of Appeal sit as a panel? I can't seem to find an answer that would be unique to a *panel* as opposed a single judge