Mental Health Blog Overview

Welcome to our Mental Health Law Blog.  We specialise in advising the providers of Mental Health Care and hope this Blog will be a useful resource both for snippets of Mental Health news, case updates and practical tips on legal issues, but also as an easy reference point to our Mental Health Law Briefing which published its 100 edition in May 2006.1

RadcliffesLeBrasseur appointment to specialist NHS panel

RadcliffesLeBrasseur are pleased to announce that they have been appointed to the specialist panel of solicitors advising the NHS bodies that subscribe to the Healthcare Purchasing Consortium on mental health and healthcare law.  Read the full topic and comments


MHRT Stakeholders Email Bulletin

MHRT has recently launched an email bulletin.  Read the full topic and comments


Mental Health Bill vital to community care

Health minister Ivan Lewis and mental health tsar Professor Louis Appleby both welcomed the final stages of the parliamentary passage of the Mental Health Bill as a vital step towards modern community services.  Read the full topic and comments

Lords to rule on care home rights

A legal battle to decide if people in privately-run care homes should be protected by human rights laws is to go to the House of Lords.  Read the full topic and comments

When does the Mental Capacity Act come into force?

The Department of health have released a timetable for implementing the Act.  Read the full topic and comments

High risk mental health patients are being failed warns Appleby

Failures to identify high risk mental health patients are leading to 1300 suicides a week, according to the mental health tsar.  Read the full topic and comments

Commission releases report about green paper consultation and publishes Eurobarometer Survey

Commission publishes report on results of consultation on European Commission Green paper on Mental Health, launched in October 2005.  Read the full topic and comments

Dignity in care

On Tuesday 14 November, I launched an important new campaign to raise the profile of treating people receiving care services with dignity. I wanted to draw this to your attention. Read the full topic and comments

BBC comment on proposed bill

Controversial laws allowing people with untreatable personality disorders to be detained, even if they have not committed a crime, are to be revived. Read the full topic and comments

MHAC Policy Briefing

MHAC Policy Briefing for Commissioners issue 15, November 2006.  Read the full topic and comments

Mental Capacity Act

Extract of email from the Department of Health .....

"regarding the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and the Bournewood Gap. Your email has been passed to me and I hope that the following reply is of help. Read the full topic and comments

Rules shake up

Rules shake-up makes it easier to strike off dangerous doctors.  Read the full topic and comments

Mental Health review tribunal

Mental health – Mental health review tribunal – Proceedings – Reconsideration after non-compliance with recommendation.  Read the full topic and comments

Mental Capacity Act 2005 - research

SI 2006/2814: Brings various provisions of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 relating to research into force.  Read the full topic and comments

Mental Capacity Act 2005

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 has already been heralded as introducing a new regime in respect of issues affecting people who lack mental capacity to make decisions, including those who are presently competent but might lack capacity in the future.  Read the full topic and comments

Mental Health Act Commission Policy briefing

Detained patients and smoking, prison transfer patients' benefits, the "other" statutory consultee for second opinions, nearest relatives of non-uk residents and responding to the criticism of MHAC Practice in the 10th edition of Richard Jones Manual.  Read the full topic and comments

Grounds for grant of writ of habaes corpus

Government publishes proposals to close the Bournewood gap.  Read the full topic and comments

Voting rights of detained patients

Disenfranchisement is part of the historical stigmatisation of and discrimination against people with mental disorder.   Read the full topic and comments

Nearest relative of non-UK residents

We recently had cause to seek Departmental guidance on s.26(5)(a) of the Act. This establishes a residency requirement on some Nearest Relatives. In the case of a patient who is normally resident in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man, any person who would be eligible for Nearest Relative status according to the Act’s hierarchical list, but is not resident within these jurisdictions, must be discounted from consideration for the role. 
Read the full topic and comments

ECCA meets Baroness Pitkealthley

On 23 May members of the English Community Care Association (ECCA), met Baroness Pitkeathley OBE, Labour Life Peer and Deputy Speaker in the House of Lords.   Read the full topic and comments

DH briefings on amendments to Mental Health Bill

Documents recently published by the Department of Health which give a brief outline of major amendments proposed.  Read the full topic and comments

Supervised self harm plan

An innovative scheme allowing patients who self harm to do so under supervision in hospital, has attracted considerable comment in the healthcare and general press.  Read the full topic and comments 

Better advocacy rights

Particularly vulnerable people who lack capacity to make their own decisions will be supported and represented by a new Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA), under detailed proposals announced today by health minister Rosie Winterton.   Read the full topic and comments

New roles for Mental Health nurses

Major review recommends new way forward for key mental health professionals.  Read the full topic and comments

Government announcement

The Government announcement on the Mental Health Bill: an initial analysis.  Read the full topic and comments

ECCA Lunch Press Release

On 21 March members of the English Community Care Association (ECCA) met Stephen O’Brien MP, Shadow Minister for Long-term Care.  Within hours of sending out the invitation, the event was fully subscribed, illustrating the engagement that members of ECCA want to have with politicians.   Read the full topic and comments

Mental Health Bill Press Release

New shorter Bill to amend existing Mental Health Act.  Read the full topic and comments

Mental Capacity Act 2005 - Code of Practice Consultation Withdrawal of treatment

Significant changes to the law and how care is provided to people lacking mental capacity are set out in a new draft Code of Practice which has just been published.  Read the full topic and comments

Rehabiliation guidance for people with mental health problems

A new drive to help people with mental health problems get back on their feet and back into work was launched today by Health Minister Rosie Winterton.  Read the full topic and comments

GMC Guidance for Doctors in Management

The GMC is publishing new guidance for Doctors who act as Managers, as well as those who work in managed environments.  Read the full topic and comments

Violent Patients : Does staff safety trump patient care?

It is an inescapable fact for those providing mental health care that on occasions psychiatric patients may be violent.  One response to this may be to use seclusion of the patient to prevent him/her having contact with others for a defined period.  Although controversial, it remains a tool available to mental health professionals.   Read the full topic and comments

Mental Health Act Commission Biennial Report

The MHAC has recently published its latest Biennial Report. As well as the usual useful commentary on Mental Health issues it includes a useful digest of the most important Mental Health Law decisions from the Courts. Andrew Parsons of RadcliffesLeBrasseur is one of the Legal Panel that contributed to the Report.  Read the full topic and comments

Mental Health Capacity Act

The Lord Chancellor’s Department have recently announced a consultation on the draft form to be used in conjunction with the Mental Capacity Act 2005, particularly with regards to Lasting Powers of Attorney.  Read the full topic and comments

Inquests: Is a death in Hospital governed by Article 2?

The Court has recently handed down a decision (Takousis) holding to the effect that a death in Hospital does not automatically engage Article 2 of the Human Rights Act indeed in many cases the existence of the right to bring proceedings for compensation will mean that the Inquest is not part of the State’s substantive duty to investigate death under Article 2.2   Read the full topic and comments

Useful Mental Health Law Websites:

Mental Health Act Commission www.mhac.org.uk
Mental Health Review Tribunal www.mhrt.org.uk
Department of Health www.dh.gov.uk
Mind www.mind.org.uk

1 Mental Health Law Briefings are circulated free of charge by email.  To join the circulation list please email: julia.worton@rlb-law.com

2 Our leaflet summarising the procedure at Inquests and providing a useful guide for Healthcare professionals is available by emailing andrew.parsons@rlb-law.com.