What is the Court of Protection?


The Court of Protection (COP) makes decisions on financial or welfare matters for people who cannot make decisions at the time they need to be made (mainly because the person in question ‘lacks mental capacity’).

What is the COP responsible for:

  • deciding whether someone has the mental capacity to make a particular decision for themselves
  • appointing deputies to make ongoing decisions for people who lack mental capacity
  • giving people permission to make one-off decisions on behalf of someone else who lacks mental capacity
  • handling urgent or emergency applications where a decision must be made on behalf of someone else without delay
  • making decisions about a lasting power of attorney or enduring power of attorney and considering any objections to their registration
  • considering applications to make statutory wills or gifts
  • making decisions about when someone can be deprived of their liberty under the Mental Capacity Act

The COP is based in London. Most cases are heard by district judges and a senior judge but they can sometimes be heard by High Court judges. Cases can occasionally be transferred to a local court for hearing too.

If you have any questions about the Court of Protection or setting up Lasting Powers of Attorney, please get in touch.

Ann-Marie Matthews is a solicitor in the private client team at Barker Gotelee, Ipswich Solicitors.

Suffolk Private Client Solicitors – for more information on our range of legal services, please call the team on 01473 611211 or email [email protected]