Court of Protection: A Practical Guide to Gifting

Gifting during one’s lifetime is not uncommon. It is not unusual for those who are financially comfortable to gift monies or assets they own to their children or loved ones to assist them, particularly in times of hardship and it is their prerogative to do so. However, the situation changes when someone starts losing or has lost capacity. How does one tackle gifting in this scenario? ‘Court of Protection: A Practical Guide to Gifting’ will take the reader through the relevant statutory principles and case law and: introduce the relevant capacity which one is required to have to make a gift and the legal test used to determine capacity; remind attorneys and deputies of the gifts which they are authorised to make; highlight the ramifications of making an unauthorised gift; provide practitioners with a checklist of the key points to consider before making an application to the Court of Protection; explain the procedure involved in preparing such an application. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mitra Mann is a specialist litigator in Contentious Probate and Court of Protection matters. She deals with cases involving Will disputes, claims for reasonable financial provisions from an estate, professional negligence, restoring a vulnerable person’s estate and a range of Court of Protection applications. Mitra is particularly passionate about protecting vulnerable adults. She is a trained Dementia Friends Champion dedicated to raising awareness of mental capacity issues locally and nationally. One way of preventing financial abuse, whether done intentionally or unintentionally, is to share information with other professionals, carers, financial advisers, attorneys and deputies and to that end, Mitra has written articles and delivered webinars and seminars in several Court of Protection practice areas. CONTENTS Introduction – The Court of Protection and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Chapter One – Capacity: When Does One Become “P”? Chapter Two – P’s Capacity to Make a Gift Chapter Three – Gifting on Behalf of P and Maintenance Payments Chapter Four – What to Consider When Making an Authorised Gift? Chapter Five – Unauthorised Gifts Chapter Six – Decision-Making Process Chapter Seven – Checklist for Practitioners: Is an Application Appropriate? Chapter Eight – Preparing the Application Chapter Nine – Issuing Proceedings and the Getting to the Final Stage Chapter Ten – Costs in Court of Protection Proceedings Chapter Eleven – Consequences of Not Seeking the Court of Protection’s Approval Chapter Twelve – Financial Abuse and Useful Contacts