Author: aruckkeene

LAG Court of Protection Handbook in Practice – free online training event on 4 February 2026

Court of Protection Handbook in Practice

Our expert panel Alex Ruck Keene KC (Hon), Sophy Miles, Laura Mannering, and Kate Edwards will guide you through a 90-minute session offering practical guidance on three critical areas for practitioners:

  • Closed Materials Guidance – Understanding its scope and application.
  • A Deputy’s Role and Recent Case Law – The implications of Riddle v NA [2025] EWCOP 39 (T3) and what it means for deputies.
  • Enforcing COP Orders – Managing enforcement challenges, including police involvement and forced entry.

The session will end with an interactive Q&A session.

Designed for those working in the Court of Protection, this session is designed to keep you ahead of the curve and demonstrate how the Handbook continues to evolve between editions. Delegates will also receive a code for 10% off the book!

To book, please see here.

Court of Protection Handbook 5th edition – and updated website

The new (2025, 5th) edition of the Court of Protection Handbook is now available, and accompanying website has been updated (not least to reflect the new jazzy green cover). Amongst other delights are:

(1) an updated sample chapter (5) on whether making an application is appropriate;

(2) updated sample pre-issue letter, witness statement, position statement and letters of instruction to an independent social worker and an independent psychiatrist;

(3) a new sample letter of instruction to a psychiatrist asked to produce a s.49 report and guidance on how to complete a s.49 report;

(4) materials already appearing on the updates pages to reflect developments since the book was published;

(5) a bonus PD which had slipped apparently everyone’s knowledge about cases involving Welsh speakers.

CoP Handbook – a new edition on the way!

We would normally be publishing an update covering relevant developments over the past 3 months on this page, but the team (with some exciting new additions) are hard at work updating the 4th edition to a new, expanded, 5th edition. So bear with us if the page is not updated – but please do get in touch if you think that there are things that the 5th edition needs to cover, by email to alex.ruckkeene@39essex.com. We can’t promise we will be able to, but now is the time to ask!

Court of Protection Handbook update May 2024


A few days early (next week is particularly busy for me), the May 2024 quarterly update to the Court of Protection Handbook is now available on the Handbook website, including such matters as judicial visits, when to bring serious medical treatment cases to the Court of Protection, when the court can revoke deputyship and fee increases before the court.

Fees increase in the Court of Protection

With effect from 1 May 2024, the fee for making an application in the Court of Protection will rise from £371 to £408, and the appeal fee from £234 to £257.

The Court and Tribunal Fees (Miscellaneous Amendments) Order 2024 also corrects some errors, including in the Court of Protection Fees Order 2007.  As the Explanatory Memorandum notes:

Paragraph 14(3)(b) in Schedule 2 to the Court of Protection Fees Order 2007 deals with the calculation of a party’s disposable capital and gross monthly income for the purposes of calculating entitlement to fee remissions. Mistakenly, paragraph 14(3)(b) fails to specify that the gross monthly income of ‘P’ (the protected party) is to be treated as the gross monthly income of the party, in proceedings brought concerning the property and affairs of a P. This amendment will correct this oversight.

Amended Court of Protection Practice Directions from 1 April 2024

Amendments to three Practice Directions supplementing the Court of Protection Rules 2017 have been made. In summary the changes are:

  • Practice Direction 2A is amended to make provision for circumstances in which circuit judges and recorders may act as Tier 3 Judges.
  • Practice Direction 19B is substituted to reflect updates to fixed costs that may be claimed by deputies, and to make other consequential amendments to reflect recent case law.
  • Practice Direction 20B is amended to clarify the circumstances in which appeals from a Tier 2 Judge may be heard by the Court of Appeal.

The amendments to the Practice Directions come into force on 1 April 2024.

All the Practice Directions can be found here.

Revised help with fees process

A revised COP44A Help with fees application, and COP44B guidance notes have been published and are to be used with effect from Monday 12th February 2024. There will be a transition period between Monday 12th February 2024 until Thursday 29th February 2024 where old paper or digital applications will be accepted, however any applications received whether digitally or in paper form received by the Court from Friday 1st March onwards will be rejected, and returned to the sender for the new version of the form to be completed.

Under the updated scheme, there are quite a few changes to how applications are processed by courts and tribunals, learning from the court’s experience of dealing with these applications over the years. These changes are needed to ensure timely, accurate decisions and these will be followed nationally. Some of the key changes are:

  • Applications must be submitted to the court or tribunal within 28 days of an online Help with Fees reference code being generated or, for paper applications, within 28 days of the application being signed.
  • Where the application is either not submitted within this timescale, completed incorrectly, has key information missing, or if the deadline to provide requested evidence is missed, it will be rejected and a fresh application will be required within the relevant time limits. You must therefore ensure you read the contents of the form and guidance carefully before completing your application and that accurate and up to date information is provided. This will help to reduce delays and time taken to process your application.
  • If you are a legal representative or litigation friend and you believe your client is eligible for Help with Fees, you should ensure the application is completed fully to reduce the need for any further queries.
  • Applicants retain the right to appeal the court’s decisions based on the information they provided on the application which they believe makes them eligible for Help with Fees support. If you need to provide new information to the court or tribunal, this will require a new application.