Brain Tumour Awareness Month: Court of Protection

As we continue to support Brain Tumour Awareness Month, our Court of Protection team have prepared a facts guide and examples of situations where they may be able to assist you or a loved one.

Did you know?

• Not all brain tumours are cancerous, some can be benign
• Brain tumours reduce life expectancy by 27 years, which is the highest of any type of cancer
• 33 people a day are diagnosed with a primary brain tumour
• Only 3% of the £700m a year spent on researching cancer is spent on brain tumours
• Over 5,300 people a year die following a brain tumour

How can we help?

Should you be diagnosed with a brain tumour and want advice on what this may mean for the management of your financial affairs in future, we are here to help.

1. Lasting Power of Attorney

A LPA is a legal document in which you choose a person to make decisions on your behalf. You can instruct us as your Attorney to assist in making decisions relating to your property and financial affairs. You must have mental capacity to make your own decisions and be over 18 in order to apply for a LPA.

This may be relevant where you have recently been diagnosed with a brain tumour and are uncertain on what this may mean in future. It is a good idea to have a LPA in place, so you can have less responsibility and focus on what really matters as your treatment progresses. Having a LPA also means that your family and friends do not have to deal with important issues should something happen to you in future.

1. Deputyships

Once someone has lost the mental capacity to make their own decisions, you cannot make a LPA on their behalf. Instead, you need to make a Deputyship application to appoint someone to act as their Deputy. We can assist you in making this application to the Court of Protection to appoint either yourself as a “Lay Deputy” or us as a “Professional Deputy”.

We have connections with case managers and external services across the UK, so we can help to find you the necessary treatment and therapy to help you live a full and happy life, despite a brain tumour diagnosis. By instructing us to manage your finances, either via a LPA or Deputyship, we will always make decisions which are in your best interests and use our expertise and network to support your recovery. We have numerous clients who we have been able to support in this way and have benefitted from being introduced to support groups in their area, one-to-one specialised care and more.

Should you have any queries relating to any of the above, please do not hesitate to contact our Court of Protection team on 01484 821 500 or email willsandprobate@ramsdens.co.uk.