Alex Ruck Keene KC (Hon) is a barrister at 39 Essex Chambers. Alex has been recommended as a leading expert in the field of mental capacity law for many years, appearing in cases involving the Mental Capacity Act 2005 at all levels up to and including the Supreme Court and European Court of Human Rights. He also writes extensively about mental capacity law and policy. Works to which Alex has contributed include the annual Court of Protection Practice (LexisNexis), The International Protection of Adults (Oxford University Press, 2015) and Assessment of Mental Capacity (Law Society/BMA, 5th edition, 2022).
Alex is a Professor of Practice at King’s College London, a Visiting Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, and a Research Affiliate at the Essex Autonomy Project, University of Essex. Alex is the creator of the website www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicylaw.org.uk. He was made an Honorary QC (now KC) in March 2022 in recognition of his services to mental capacity and mental health law outside the courtroom.
Kate Edwards is a Solicitor and Partner at national firm Fletchers where she is Director for the Court of Protection Department. Kate is a highly experienced property and affairs deputy and is both personally appointed to act as deputy and also the director of a trust corporation. In 2012, Kate founded the Court of Protection Practitioner’s Association (CoPPA) and she continues to serve on the national executive committee. She is recognised as a ‘Next Generation Partner’ in the Legal 500.
Nicola Mackintosh KC (Hon) is the founder and Director of Mackintosh Law, a specialist law firm representing disabled clients in relation to mental capacity and community care law. Nicola is co-chair of the Legal Aid Practitioners Group and an Honorary Bencher of Middle Temple. She is a longstanding member of the Law Society’s Mental Health and Disability Committee and previous member of the Law Society Council. Nicola has been regularly instructed by the Official Solicitor in complex Court of Protection cases, including hybrid cases concerning health and welfare and finances, resulting in some of the leading judgments in the field. She continues to be a strong advocate for legal aid and improved access to justice for disabled people and was made an Honorary KC in 2014 in recognition of her important contribution.
Sophy Miles is a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers. She was called to the Bar in 2025, after 25 years as a solicitor, including 16 years as one of the founding partners at Miles and Partners, where she led the Mental Health and Court of Protection team. Sophy practices in all aspects of mental health and disability law, with particular emphasis on work in the Court of Protection. She acts for vulnerable adults, children, their families, local authorities and NHS bodies. She has appeared in inherent jurisdiction cases involving medical treatment, forced marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM). She is particularly interested in the interface between the Mental Capacity Act and the Mental Health Act. Sophy is an accredited mediator, registered with the Civil Mediation Council as a civil/
commercial and a community mediator. Sophy was appointed as a fee-paid member of the Mental Health Tribunal in 2004 and nominated to sit in the Court of Protection in 2020. She enjoys training and writing about all matters mental health and mental capacity. She co-authored Legal Action Group’s Mental Health Tribunal Handbook, published in 2015 with a forthcoming second edition out in 2026.
Sheree Green is the former Chair of the Law Society Committee on Mental Health and Disability, and Director of Greenchurch Legal Services, the winners of the 14th Annual STEP Vulnerable Client Advisory Practice of the year. A private client practitioner, Sheree is also an independent panel deputy, with particular expertise in representing individuals with both mental health and mental capacity difficulties. Sheree has also contributed to the Law Society publications Assessment of Mental Capacity and The Elderly Client Handbook. She provides training to solicitors and other professionals on mental capacity-related issues.
Laura Mannering is a solicitor advocate and partner at Edwards Duthie Shamash Solicitors with over 16 years of experience specialising in Court of Protection and community care law. Laura is also an Accredited Legal Representative (ALR) under the Law Society Mental Capacity Accreditation Scheme. Laura is regularly instructed by the Official Solicitor in complex Court of Protection proceedings. She has a particular interest in cases representing vulnerable adults in proceedings relating to their mental capacity and best interests in respect of issues concerning their residence, care, contact with particular individuals, foreign travel, contraception and engaging in sexual relations and consent to marriage, as well as cases involving decisions about serious medical treatment. Laura has been involved in significant cases, including Kent County Council v P & NHS Kent and Medway Commissioning Group and Esper v NHS NW London ICB (Appeal: Anonymity in Committal Proceedings) both of which dealt with issues relating to transparency and privacy in the Court of Protection. As well as delivering training on the issue, Laura has written a guide to transparency in the Court of Protection, A Practical Guide to Privacy, Transparency, Reporting Restrictions and Closed Hearings in The Court of Protection.
Court of Protection Handbook 