Assisted Decision-Making Act 2015

The Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act 2015 provides for a new legal framework for supported decision making in Ireland, to deal with situations where a person may have difficulties with making certain types of decision and to provide for ways to plan ahead for a time when that might happen in the future.

We provide legal advice and legal aid in the area of Assisted Decision Making in our specialised Law Centre in Ballymun, Dublin 9 and, outside of Dublin, You can contact your local Law Centre for more information.

The Act provides for a number of decision-making supports:

1. Decision Making Assistance Agreements and Co-Decision Making Agreements:

This is where someone is having difficulty making decisions without help and may need to appoint someone to assist them making decisions or to make decisions jointly with them. These arrangements can be completed through the Decision Support Service and we provide legal advice services to financially eligible applicants in these matters.

2. Enduring Powers of Attorney and Advance Healthcare Directives:

These are future planning supports which you can put in place now to help if there comes a time when you lose capacity. These arrangements are completed through the Decision Support Service and we provide legal advice in these matters to financially eligible applicants.

3. Capacity Applications:

We provide legal advice and legal representation in proceedings before the Circuit Court for the appointment of a Decision Making Representative. 

1. 1. We support family members and others in making applications to the Court, subject to financial eligibility;
   2. We also provide independent legal representation to the relevant person (the person with the difficulty in making the decision). Relevant persons do not have to be financially eligible for legal services.

4. Discharge from Wardship Applications:

We provide legal advice and legal representation in proceedings before the High Court for discharge of a ward from wardship. 

1. 1. The relevant person leaving wardship is entitled to legal services and does not have to be financially eligible. We will deal with the Committee on behalf of the relevant person. We will also provide legal services after the Discharge hearing to assist with putting in place a Co-Decision Making Agreement, where that is necessary.
   2. We also support other people, family members, friends and others involved with the relevant person, who wish to seek legal advice and representation in these cases, subject to financial eligibility.

We Can Provide

1. Legal advice: Clear, confidential guidance to help you understand your rights, the process and what to expect at each stage.
2. Legal representation: Professional support from our solicitors and barristers to represent you in court.

Priority Applications

Costs Recovery

While the 2015 Act sets out provisions for costs recovery from wards and relevant persons who would not ordinarily be financially eligible and to whom legal services are provided by the Board, there are no Regulations in place dealing with costs recovery from such clients of the Board at this time. You can obtain further information on costs from your local law centre or the solicitor assigned to your case.

Client Testimonial

Peter was just 52 when he suffered life changing injuries after a cardiac arrest. His medical needs were complex and the hospital involved in his care looked to appoint a Decision Making Representative to him under the Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act. As a result, Peter came to us to provide him with independent legal advice and representation and to help him express his will and preference in the proceedings.

"I did not understand the reason for the hospital’s application. Over the past two years I had made good and right decisions. The biggest of these was my decision to fight to live when medical staff advised this was not an option. If I had not had the chance to make my own decisions at that time and relied on the decision of others, I would not be alive.

I understood, due to my ongoing medical needs and injuries, that I had a difficult rehabilitation ahead and difficult decisions to make about where I would live and what treatments I should have. But, I wanted the chance to continue to make decisions in my life and steer my recovery process alongside the support and guidance of my family, and not just my medical team.”