What steps should you take if you have concerns about a party’s capacity to enter into a negotiated agreement, asks Elizabeth Carson
A recent High Court case provides a useful reminder of practitioners’ obligations to the court when a party lacks capacity. MAP v RAP [2013] EWHC 4784 (Fam) concerned an application for permission to appeal a consent order where—among other reasons—the wife argued that she lacked capacity to enter into a compromise agreement with her husband, as she had been suffering from manic depression at the time the agreement was reached. The decision of Mr Justice Mostyn provides a helpful reminder of the steps that practitioners should take when they encounter a party who appears to lack capacity:
- Practitioners must notify the court if they have concerns about a party’s capacity to conduct the proceedings (Practice Direction 15B, para 1.3);
- The compromise of proceedings by a protected party is not valid unless approved by the court (CPR 21.10); and
- An application can be made to a court of first instance to revoke or vary
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