BCLI Asks for Public Input on Tests of Mental Capacity
February 22, 2013
BY Alison Taylor
Vancouver, 22 February 2013—Today the British Columbia Law Institute has published its Consultation Paper on Common-Law Tests of Capacity. The consultation paper examines legislative reforms to judge-made rules governing when a person is determined to have the mental capacity to carry out a transaction or enter into a relationship. It was prepared with the assistance of a ten-person, all-volunteer project committee, made up of some of the leading lights in this area of the law.
“We hope to hear from legal advisors and the general public on this important topic,” said committee chair Andrew MacKay, “which touches on issues that affect the daily lives of British Columbians.”
The consultation paper contains 31 proposals for reform on how tests of mental capacity operate when someone wants to make a will, to designate a beneficiary under an insurance policy or retirement plan, to make a gift, to nominate a committee, to enter into a contract, to retain legal counsel, to marry or enter into a spousal relationship, or to separate from a spouse.
The full consultation paper, a summary consultation, a response booklet, and a backgrounder, are all available online.
If you want your response to be considered by us as we prepare the final report for the Common-Law Tests of Capacity Project, then we must receive it by 15 June 2013.
The Common-Law Tests of Capacity Project has been made possible by grants from the Law Foundation of British Columbia and the Notary Foundation of British Columbia.
The British Columbia Law Institute strives to be a leader in law reform by carrying out the best in scholarly law-reform research and writing and the best in outreach relating to law reform.
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Contact: Kevin Zakreski
Staff Lawyer
(604) 827-5336
