Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000
Within the context of this Act, ‘Incapacity’ means “incapable of:
- Acting, or
- Making decisions, or
- Communicating decisions, or
- Understanding decisions, or
- Retaining the memory of decisions
By reason of mental disorder or communication difficulty, when the latter cannot be rectified”.
When considering a person’s capacity it is very important to work on the presumption that the person has capacity unless established that they lack capacity by a suitably qualified medical practitioner.
It is important not to assume that a person lacks capacity to make a decision due to:
- Age
- Disability
- Appearance
- Personality/behaviour
- Medical condition (including mental illness)
- Beliefs
- Communicate ability/style.
- Making an apparently poor/unwise decision.
- Previously being assessed as lacking capacity. They may regain capacity in the future.
The person should not be treated as being unable to make a decision unless all practical steps to assist them have been undertaken.