News.

In *Bristol City Council v CC* [2026] EWCOP 19, Mrs Justice Theis used a case concerning deprivation of liberty in community care arrangements to give detailed guidance on the instruction of experts in Court of Protection proceedings. The judgment stresses focused, proportionate letters of instruction that pose clear questions and avoid lengthy recitations of law, and that respect the court’s gatekeeping role over whether expert evidence is necessary at all.

For psychiatrists and psychologists who assess capacity, the guidance is directly practical: it shapes the scope of what they are asked to address and reinforces that the expert’s role is to inform, not determine, the court’s decision. It was highlighted as a key practice-and-procedure development in the 39 Essex Chambers Mental Capacity Report for May 2026.