Deprivation of liberty

The Deprivation of Liberty safeguards

In the case of HL v United Kingdom, also known as the Bournewood case, the European Court of Human Rights held that a procedure prescribed by law must be followed where a person with mental disorder is cared for or given treatment in conditions which amount to a deprivation of their liberty.

As a result of this case a number of provisions were inserted into the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA 2005) by the Mental Health Act 2007 (MHA 2007), and came into force on 1 April 2009. In particular, the addition of Schedule A1 to MCA 2005 introduced what has become known as the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards regime or DOLS regime.

The new powers given by MHA 2007 to the Court of Protection and the DOLS regime were introduced in order to provide appropriate legal protection for incapacitated individuals who are or may be deprived of their liberty outside of the framework of the Mental Health Act 1983 (MeHA 1983).

Statutory guidance on the DOLS regime has been issued although this guidance

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