Introduction
11.1This chapter addresses the participation and representation of P before the Court of Protection. With effect from July 2015, and the amendments introduced by the Court of Protection (Amendment) Rules (COP(A)R) 2015,
1SI No 548. very much greater attention is now being paid to the issue of participation. Whilst it will remain the case that P will not be joined as a party to the majority of applications, P is now able to participate through a wider range of options than previously addressed in this chapter.
11.2The chapter will also address the position where a party to the proceedings is a protected party (ie they are an adult who lacks litigation capacity) or they are a child, as in both cases they will require a litigation friend (in the case of a child, unless the court orders otherwise). It should be noted that the 2015 rule changes included a complete replacement for Part 17 of the Court of Protection Rules (COPR), the governing rules in relation to these situations. Whilst, for the most part, the provisions are materially the same, care should be taken to ensure that the current version of Part 17 is consulted (and also the updated accompanying Practice Direction, PD 17A).
11.3A good practice guide to acting as a litigation friend or an Accredited Legal Representative (ALR) is to be found at the end of this chapter.