Community Care Law Update: a review of case-law and legal developments in the last 12 months

The webinar will cover: 

Adult social care: recent case-law on challenging assessments and getting services under Care Act 2014; Care Act Easements update; care home visits during Covid-19; inherent jurisdiction for the protection of vulnerable adults
 
Children’s social care: recent case-law on services and accommodation under Children Act 1989 including s 17 and s 25 (accommodation for restricting liberty); cases challenging downgrading of statutory protections in response to Covid-19
 
No Recourse to Public Funds: policy and Art. 3 (e.g. W v SSHD)
 
Health: recent public law challenges to NHS Continuing Healthcare ineligibility; injunction to leave hospital
 

Recording

Speakers

Gráinne Mellon, Barrister, Garden Court Chambers (Year of Call: 2010) (Chair)
Gráinne is a public law specialist with expertise in human rights, civil liberties and equality law. Her practice includes all aspects of immigration and nationality law, community care and Court of Protection, children's rights and discrimination law. In community care cases, Grainne is instructed in judicial reviews as well as in human rights and equality act claims. She acts on behalf of disabled children and their families, destitute families, migrant families, victims of trafficking and unaccompanied and age disputed children, including in age assessment challenges and trials.  Grainne also acts and advises in family immigration cross-over cases and is frequently instructed as an expert on immigration issues in care cases. Gráinne is appointed to the Equality and Human Rights Commission's preferred Panel of Counsel.

She teaches International Human Rights Law at the London School of Economics and is also a Fellow in the Centre for Human Rights at the LSE. She is the Vice-Chair of the Bar Human Rights Committee, the international human rights arm of the Bar of England and Wales. Grainne sits, on a part-time basis, as a Judge in the First Tier Tribunal Health, Education and Social Care (Mental Health). 

Bethan Harris, Barrister, Garden Court Chambers (Year of Call: 1990)
Bethan Harris is an experienced practitioner specialising in social housing law, community care law and Court of Protection. She is a member of the Equality and Human Rights Commission's panel of counsel.  She is an editor of the Community Care Law Reports and writes frequently for the Legal Action Magazine. She is ranked in Tier 1 of the Legal 500 for Court of Protection and Community Care.

Bethan appears frequently in the Court of Protection. Her work includes emergency applications, deprivation of liberty issues, local authority safeguarding duties, personal welfare applications, contested appointments of financial/health and welfare deputies, complex care packages. She covers some property and financial affairs matters. Bethan acts for litigation friends, local authorities and family members.

Bethan's work in community care includes assessments and service delivery issues such as direct payments; personal budgets, and eligibility criteria; accommodation issues; delivery of services to people who lack mental capacity; charging; children in need; carers' assessments; Equality Act issues, disability adaptations, safeguarding and human rights duties of public bodies to vulnerable adults.

Tim Baldwin, Barrister, Garden Court Chambers (Year of Call: 2001)
Tim Baldwin is ranked in Chambers UK for Social Housing and is identified as a leading junior in the Legal 500 for Social Housing; Court of Protection and Community Care; and Civil Liberties and Human Rights. Tim is known for his fierce commitment to representing vulnerable, marginalised and disadvantaged clients. He has appeared in a number of reported cases in the Court of Appeal, High Court, Upper Tribunal, as well as significant inquests.

Tim has considerable experience specialising in Court of Protection proceedings concerning health and welfare decisions, accommodation and DOLS issues for applicants and all respondents, including emergency applications and instruction by the OS. Tim's work in community care focuses on housing cases, where the tenant has mental health issues and specialist community care needs, or complex cases involving welfare benefits. He also offers advice and representation in cases involving persons who lack capacity in all jurisdictions, asylum support and care provision for migrants and complex cases concerning social care for adults or children.

Nick Bano, Barrister, Garden Court Chambers (Year of Call: 2013)
Nick specialises in representing homeless people, residential occupiers, and destitute & migrant households in both public law and private law disputes. Nick has particular expertise in cases where equality rights and social entitlement overlap.  He has been involved in bringing some of the significant recent challenges in this area.

Nick is frequently involved in bringing claims relating to children’s rights and adult social care. He has an excellent grasp of the eligibility criteria and substantive rights under the Children Act and Care Act, as well as a strong tactical insight into local authority decision making. Chambers & Partners recommends him as an ‘up and coming’ talent in the social housing field, saying ”his thriving practice takes in homelessness appeals, disrepair claims and possession proceedings, among others”.