Cost of Court of Protection welfare proceedings

By Nuffield Foundation

The cost of Court of Protection (CoP) welfare proceedings to local authorities is a serious concern and there are considerable variations between English and Welsh local authorities in the number of welfare cases brought to the Court.

These are some of the findings from research by the School of Law and Politics at Cardiff University and funded by the Nuffield Foundation. The study sought information on the typical costs and duration of CoP cases in response to concerns around the accessibility and efficiency of the Court and claims that welfare proceedings could be very costly and slow.

Established by the Mental Capacity Act 2005, the CoP makes decisions on behalf of people deemed to lack the mental capacity to do so in relation to their welfare, finances and property. Issues of deprivation of liberty also form a substantial part of the CoP’s case law.

Using information from local authorities about their involvement in CoP welfare cases during 2013-14, the Cardiff researchers examined how often local authorities were involved in welfare litigation in the CoP, how much CoP welfare cases cost local authorities, and how long CoP welfare cases typically last.

They found that most local authorities in England and Wales had been involved in at least one welfare case in the CoP in 2013-14. However, local authorities in England were involved in significantly more than those in Wales.

Most welfare applications to the CoP are made by local authorities, according to the research findings. Applications by family members, advocates and people who are said to lack mental capacity are relatively rare. Overall, the number of cases involving the Mental Capacity Act 2005 deprivation of liberty safeguards was low, raising concerns about whether people can effectively exercising rights to appeal against their detention.

Notably, the research confirms that the cost of CoP welfare proceedings to local authorities is considerable, with half of all cases in the study costing £8,150 or more. The study also corroborates widely expressed concerns that welfare litigation in the CoP can be very long running, with the typical duration of a CoP welfare case found to be 12 months.

The high cost of CoP proceedings is a matter of serious concern and the underlying reasons for the high cost and lengthy duration of CoP proceedings require urgent investigation. Those responsible for monitoring health and social care in general, and the deprivation of liberty safeguards in particular, should ensure that authorities understand and comply with obligations to refer cases to the CoP in line with legal guidance.” Cost of Court of Protection Welfare Proceedings research team

Explore our projects

New

Welfare | 2024 - 2027

Gypsy, Roma, Traveller Youth: mitigating exclusions using the digital?

View project
A front view of a father and his two children. He is carrying his young son in his arms and his daughter is riding her scooter along the footpath as he pushes his son's scooter along the way.
New

Justice | Welfare | 2024 - 2026

Challenging justice inequalities with children in conflict with the law 

View project
A young child splashing in a puddle next to his guardian and sister.
New

Justice | 2024 - 2026

Special guardianship families: experiences and support needs

View project
New

Justice | 2024 - 2026

Breaking networks of youth serious violence

View project
New

Justice | 2024 - 2024

Crossing Boundaries: Co-designing support for vulnerable young people

View project
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2027

Performance Tracker 

View project
Mother wearing hijab holding her toddler son on her knee, smiling at each other
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2025

Afghan resettlement in England: outcomes and experiences 

View project
Man getting professional advice

Justice | 2023 - 2025

Applicants’ experience of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC)

View project
Little boy at home looking pensive, playing a game on a smartphone

Justice | 2023 - 2025

Linking household benefits, financial precarity and child welfare

View project
Elderly woman and adult daughter out shopping
In progress

Welfare | 2023 - 2026

Connecting pensions, health and care

View project
Man holds girl's hand as he walks her to primary school

Justice | 2023 - 2025

Improving safeguarding outcomes after adoption or special guardianship

View project
Mother and small child on a bus looking out of the window together and playing a game naming the things they see

Justice | 2023 - 2026

Parental Advocacy in England: a realist evaluation of implementation

View project
A young child splashing in a puddle next to his guardian and sister.
New

Justice | 2024 - 2026

Special guardianship families: experiences and support needs

View project
A front view of a father and his two children. He is carrying his young son in his arms and his daughter is riding her scooter along the footpath as he pushes his son's scooter along the way.
New

Justice | Welfare | 2024 - 2026

Challenging justice inequalities with children in conflict with the law 

View project
New

Justice | 2024 - 2024

Crossing Boundaries: Co-designing support for vulnerable young people

View project
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2027

Gypsy, Roma, Traveller Youth: mitigating exclusions using the digital?

View project
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2027

Performance Tracker 

View project
Mother wearing hijab holding her toddler son on her knee, smiling at each other
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2025

Afghan resettlement in England: outcomes and experiences 

View project
New

Justice | 2024 - 2026

Breaking networks of youth serious violence

View project
Man getting professional advice

Justice | 2023 - 2025

Applicants’ experience of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC)

View project
Portrait of a teenager in front of a blue shed, looking at the camera

Justice | 2023 - 2025

Children in police custody: piloting a ‘Child First’ approach 

View project
Man holds girl's hand as he walks her to primary school

Justice | 2023 - 2025

Improving safeguarding outcomes after adoption or special guardianship

View project
Mother and small child on a bus looking out of the window together and playing a game naming the things they see

Justice | 2023 - 2026

Parental Advocacy in England: a realist evaluation of implementation

View project
Little boy at home looking pensive, playing a game on a smartphone

Justice | 2023 - 2025

Linking household benefits, financial precarity and child welfare

View project
Two little boys and a little girl, all wearing primary school uniform, work together to solve a puzzle in their classroom.
In progress

Education | 2023 - 2025

What has ‘Free School Meals’ measured and what are the implications?

View project
Elderly woman and adult daughter out shopping
In progress

Welfare | 2023 - 2026

Connecting pensions, health and care

View project
Mother, father, son and daughter standing in front of their house
In progress

Welfare | 2023 - 2025

A regional regeneration index to track socioeconomic ‘Levelling Up’

View project
Group of teenage boys at school in uniform
In progress

Justice | 2022 - 2025

Exploring racial disparity in diversion from the youth justice system

View project
Dad holding baby walking with two kids
In progress

Justice | 2022 - 2024

Administrative fairness in the digital welfare state

View project
In progress

Justice | 2022 - 2024

Transparency and judicial review: a study of the duty of candour

View project
Worried woman alone in a room, resting her head on her arms
In progress

Welfare | 2022 - 2024

Links between cognitive impairment and exploitation in England

View project
A teenage boy outdoors
In progress

Justice | 2022 - 2024

Child First: examining children’s collaboration in the Youth Justice System

View project
Older people drinking tea at a meeting at a community centre
In progress

Welfare | 2022 - 2024

Using administrative data to understand community well-being

View project
Young men looking puzzled as they look to another man for advice
In progress

Justice | 2022 - 2024

The role of communities and connections in social welfare legal advice

View project
Two children walk ahead of two adults, one pushing a pram
In progress

Justice | 2022 - 2024

Voluntary care plans for children in Scotland: using Section 25 orders

View project
Aerial view of pedestrians on city street
In progress

Welfare | 2022 - 2026

IFS Green Budget 2022 – 2025

View project
A young child splashing in a puddle next to his guardian and sister.
New

Justice | 2024 - 2026

Special guardianship families: experiences and support needs

View project
New

Justice | 2024 - 2024

Crossing Boundaries: Co-designing support for vulnerable young people

View project
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2027

Gypsy, Roma, Traveller Youth: mitigating exclusions using the digital?

View project
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2027

Performance Tracker 

View project
Mother wearing hijab holding her toddler son on her knee, smiling at each other
New

Welfare | 2024 - 2025

Afghan resettlement in England: outcomes and experiences 

View project
New

Justice | 2024 - 2026

Breaking networks of youth serious violence

View project
Reported

Justice | 2019 - 2023

Born into care: best practice guidelines

View project
Reported

Justice | 2021 - 2023

Delivering administrative justice after the pandemic

View project
Siblings play ball in a playground - Siblings Contact and the Law
Reported

Justice | 2020 - 2021

Guidance to judges on the anonymisation of children judgements

View project
Lawyer taking witness statement from male witness
Reported

Justice | 2019 - 2021

The production of witness statements by lawyers and litigants in person

View project
Close up of a young girl and her father wearing protective face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic outside.
Reported

Welfare | 2021 - 2023

The Economy 2030 Inquiry: navigating a decade of change

View project
Reported

Justice | 2020 - 2022

When is a wedding not a marriage? Exploring non-legally binding ceremonies

View project
Reported

Welfare | 2013 - 2017

IFS Green Budget 2013 – 2016

View project
Reported

Justice | 2019 - 2022

The Edinburgh Study: causes and impacts of criminal justice pathways

View project
Reported

Justice | Welfare | 2015 - 2018

Bridging the Evidence Gap in Family Proceedings

View project
Reported

Justice | 2016 - 2018

The impact of Litigants in Person on the Northern Ireland court system

View project
Reported

Justice | 2016 - 2017

Transparency and privacy in family courts

View project
Reported

Justice | 2016 - 2019

Implementation of recommendations of the Carlile report

View project
Search projects

We improve people’s lives by funding research that informs social policy, primarily in Education, Welfare and Justice. We also fund student programmes that give young people skills and confidence in science and research.

We offer our grant-holders the freedom to frame questions and enable new thinking. Our research must stand up to rigorous academic scrutiny, but we understand that to be successful in effecting change, it also needs to be relevant to people’s experience.

Profile