The law and dementia--issues in England and Wales

This paper reviews the proposals from the Lord Chancellor's Department for new Mental Incapacity law for England and Wales as they may impact on older people with dementia. Various concerns and issues are raised, particularly from the perspective of health care professionals, and the focus is the interface between such issues and the day-to-day clinical realities for a specialist team dealing with old people with dementia. A brief overview of where problems have arisen with the law in recent times is put in the context of the political/legal structures in England and Wales