Expert Witness Consulting Services

Deputies are appointed by the Court of Protection to look after the financial affairs of a person who is mentally incapacitated. This covers adults with a brain injury, learning difficulties and mental health problems.

You’ll need to consider appointing a deputy if you are acting for:

• A child who is unlikely to have capacity at the age of 18 or

• An adult who lacks capacity

An adult may have a close family member or friend who can be trusted to act as deputy and manage their finances. However, where close family members are dependent on the injured client for their accommodation and/or income, it’s usually advisable to appoint a professional deputy instead of a family member. The deputy must keep their own finances separate from that of the injured client and must not benefit personally from deputyship funds.

In the case of a brain injured child who lives with their parents, it’s likely that the deputyship funds may well be used to contribute towards accommodation costs and household bills and maybe also to compensate the parents for the additional care they provide. This results in a conflict of interest between the child and their parents which means that it is usually not appropriate for the parents to act as deputies without the involvement of a professional deputy.