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Mental Capacity Assessment
Mental Capacity Assessment to Instruct a Solicitor
Clear, decision-specific assessments of whether a person can give valid instructions to a solicitor, across England and Wales.
A capacity to instruct a solicitor assessment is a decision-specific assessment of whether a person can give valid instructions to a solicitor on a specific legal matter, applying the Mental Capacity Act 2005. It considers whether the person can understand, retain, use and weigh the information relevant to the legal issue, and communicate the instructions they want to give. This is a matter-specific question, in line with Law Society guidance, and it is not the same as capacity to conduct proceedings, so it does not include a litigation certificate. Nellie Supports provides these assessments across England and Wales, focused on the exact legal matter in question.
£600 + VAT
Standard fee, stated before instruction
5 working days
Typical turnaround
England and Wales
Nationwide coverage
Matter-specific
Focused on the actual legal issue
Nellie Supports is England and Wales' largest identified specialist private social work and mental capacity assessment practice, delivered by a permanent full-time team. Services are provided by employed, multidisciplinary professionals, not an ad hoc associate, contractor or referral-panel model. We have completed over 11,000 formal assessments and reports. This service sits alongside our full range of mental capacity assessment services.
When you may need this assessment
A capacity to instruct a solicitor assessment is usually needed when there is genuine doubt about whether the person can give valid legal instructions on the matter they want help with. This often arises where a solicitor has concerns about a client's understanding, or where a person has a diagnosis or cognitive difficulty but still wishes to proceed.
It can also be relevant where the issue is important or higher risk, where there are concerns about undue influence, family pressure, coercion or fluctuating presentation, or where family members and professionals disagree about whether the person can instruct their own solicitor. The key issue is not whether someone has a diagnosis or seems vulnerable in general, but whether they can understand and instruct on the actual legal matter in question.
The legal test we apply
This assessment applies the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to the specific legal matter in issue. Applied to that matter, the functional test asks whether the person can:
Understand the information relevant to the legal instruction, including the issue, the advice sought and the outcome they want
Retain that information long enough to make the decision
Use or weigh that information as part of deciding what to do
Communicate their instructions by any means
If the person cannot do one or more of these, the assessor considers whether that is because of an impairment of, or disturbance in, the functioning of the mind or brain. The test is not about broad impressions, a diagnosis, or vulnerability in general. It is about whether the person can make this decision, at this time, in relation to this legal matter.
Framework: Mental Capacity Act 2005 ss 1 to 3; Law Society guidance on making a matter-specific assessment of capacity. This assessment does not include a Certificate as to Capacity to Conduct Proceedings, which relates to the separate question of litigation capacity.
For guidance on instructing an assessor, read our guide: how to instruct a mental capacity assessor.
Our process for capacity to instruct a solicitor assessments
Initial enquiry and triage
Contact us and we gather the key details, explain how the process works, and confirm the exact legal matter that needs to be assessed.
Quotation and booking
Once we understand the scope, we provide a clear quotation including VAT and any travel costs, and arrange a suitable appointment as quickly as possible.
Assessment appointment
A qualified assessor meets the person face to face or remotely where appropriate, and carries out a decision-specific assessment focused on the legal matter in question.
Report preparation and peer review
The findings are written up clearly and reviewed by a second qualified professional for quality and consistency.
Secure delivery
Your completed report is returned securely by email, usually within 5 to 10 working days, with reasonable minor amendments and clarification available after delivery.
Inside a Nellie Supports report
A strong report is specific to the actual legal matter, explains what relevant information the person needed to understand, records the support provided, and shows clearly how the conclusion was reached.
Instruction and the specific legal matter assessed
Documents and records reviewed
Relevant information for the legal instruction
Practicable steps taken to support the person
Assessment findings and observations
Consideration of vulnerability and undue influence
Analysis against the Mental Capacity Act 2005 test and conclusion
Limitations and declarations
Capacity to instruct a solicitor fees and timescales
£600 + VAT
Standard fee. VAT at 20% and travel costs are not included. Enhanced assessment from £3,500 + VAT.
A home visit or video assessment, whichever suits the person and the matter
A calm, professional, person-centred assessment
A decision-specific focus on the exact legal matter, not a general opinion
Assessment completed in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005
Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) where appropriate, at no extra cost
A clear, matter-specific written report, peer reviewed before release
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A full-time, multidisciplinary team
Nellie Supports is built on an employed, permanent team: registered social workers, a Chartered Psychologist and specialist assessors working together to one standard, with every report peer reviewed by a second qualified professional. Your assessment is never passed to an associate bank or referral panel.
The right professional for the decision
Capacity questions range from care and residence to complex cognition and prognosis. A multidisciplinary team means the discipline is matched to the decision, not to whoever is available.
One consistent standard
The team works together full time, so every assessment follows the same methodology and peer review is built into every report rather than bolted on.
Accountability you can name
Your report is signed by an employed professional who answers for their work, and the practice stands behind it.
Continuity, not hand-offs
The people who take your enquiry, carry out the assessment and review the report all work in one practice, so nothing is lost between stages.
How this works in practice
The situation
A solicitor was asked to act for a client on the sale of their home. The client had recently had a stroke, and the solicitor was unsure whether they could properly understand and instruct on the sale. They instructed Nellie Supports for a decision-specific assessment of capacity to instruct on that matter.
The assessment
We met the client at home and focused only on the specific legal matter: what the sale involved, what the solicitor was being asked to do and what outcome the client wanted. Information was given in a clear, unhurried way, with time to take it in, and cognitive screening supported the picture of any impairment.
The outcome
With that support, the client could understand, weigh and communicate their instructions about the sale, and the assessment concluded they had capacity to instruct the solicitor on that matter. The report set out the reasoning clearly, so the solicitor could proceed with confidence.
This is an illustrative example, drawn from the common features of the instruction capacity cases we assess. It does not describe any individual client.
Why families, professionals and solicitors trust Nellie Supports
Matter-specific, not generic
We focus on the actual legal matter, the relevant information and the reasoning, not vague impressions or generic wording.
Clear on the distinction
We keep non-contentious instruction issues separate from litigation capacity, so the report answers the right question.
Therapeutic assessment interviews
A calm, supportive conversation that helps the person engage as fully as possible.
Legally literate reports
Evidence-based reporting that a solicitor can rely on and that stands up to later scrutiny.
MoCA-accredited assessors
Cognitive screening where appropriate at no extra cost.
Employed, not outsourced
A permanent full-time team, peer reviewing every report.
Common questions about capacity to instruct a solicitor
Can someone still instruct a solicitor if they have dementia or another diagnosis?
Yes, sometimes. A diagnosis on its own does not decide the issue. The real question is whether the person can understand, retain, use or weigh the information relevant to the specific legal matter, and communicate their instructions at the time they need to do so.
Is being vulnerable or under pressure the same as lacking capacity?
No. Vulnerability, dependence, family pressure or possible undue influence do not automatically mean someone lacks capacity. However, they can be highly relevant, because they may affect how freely and clearly the person is able to make and express their own decision.
Is this the same as a capacity to litigate assessment?
No. Capacity to instruct a solicitor is not the same as capacity to conduct proceedings. This service assesses whether someone can give valid instructions on a legal matter. It does not include a litigation capacity certificate and should not be treated as a substitute for one.
Why might a solicitor ask for a formal capacity assessment before acting?
A solicitor may need one where there is real doubt about whether the client can properly understand the matter and give valid instructions. A formal assessment can provide clearer evidence, protect the client's interests, and reduce the risk of the decision or legal process being challenged later.
Can one assessment cover more than one legal matter?
Sometimes, but only where the issues are closely connected and it is still possible to assess each one clearly and separately. If the matters are too different, or the relevant information changes significantly from one to another, separate consideration may be needed.
What happens if the person is found to lack capacity to instruct a solicitor?
That depends on the context. The assessment does not itself appoint anyone to act, but it may help clarify whether another lawful route is needed, such as relying on an attorney or deputy. If court proceedings are involved, a separate litigation capacity issue may also need to be considered.
What if the assessment does not reach the conclusion we hoped for?
Our assessments are independent, and that independence is what gives the report its value. We do not begin from a preferred answer. We assess the specific decision on its merits and record the reasoning, whatever the conclusion. A report that only ever confirmed what was hoped for would carry no weight with a solicitor, the Court of Protection or anyone else relying on it.
Capacity to instruct a solicitor guides
How to instruct a mental capacity assessor
Getting the instruction and evidence right
Independence and conflicts of interest in capacity assessments
Why independence protects the evidence
Who can assess mental capacity?
The professionals involved and what makes an assessment suitable
Assessing multiple decisions in one capacity instruction
When more than one matter can be covered together
How solicitors should challenge a capacity report
What makes a report robust, and how it is tested
Other assessment types
If the issue is conducting court proceedings rather than giving instructions, that is a litigation capacity question. We also assess capacity to grant an LPA, and provide COP3 assessments where another lawful route is needed.
Capacity to litigate assessment
For conducting legal proceedings, including the Certificate as to Capacity to Conduct Proceedings.
Capacity to grant a Lasting Power of Attorney
Where the question is making an LPA, not day-to-day finances.
COP3 mental capacity assessment
For Court of Protection deputyship applications.
Nellie Supports provides independent social work assessment, evidence and advocacy support. We do not provide regulated legal advice, and where a legal remedy is needed we will say so and support your solicitor's work.
Book a capacity to instruct a solicitor assessment
Tell us the legal matter the person needs advice on and we will confirm whether a standard or enhanced assessment is right, the fee, and the earliest appointment.
Written by Ben Slater, Founder and Managing Director, Nellie Supports. Read our editorial policy.