UK Supreme Court judgement changes the definition of deprivation of liberty
The UK Supreme Court has published a judgement changing the definition of deprivation of liberty.
Until this judgement, a single ‘acid test’ assessment of whether someone is deprived of their liberty was used – based on a previous legal case known as ‘Cheshire West 2014’.
The UK Supreme Court has now ruled that multiple factors must be considered to assess whether someone is deprived of their liberty. This means looking at the specific situation of the individual and taking into account the type, duration, effects and manner of implementation of restrictions on the person. No single factor is determinative.
This judgement has implications for people who work in health and social care, particularly anyone who cares for an individual who lacks capacity to consent to their care and residence where there is/may be a deprivation of liberty, and anyone who has a responsibility within their organisation for deprivation of liberty safeguards.
Find out more from the Department for Health and Social Care here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-the-definition-of-deprivation-of-liberty/uk-supreme-court-2026-judgment-on-what-constitutes-a-deprivation-of-liberty
Listen to a podcast episode from Anthony Collins solicitors about this judgement here: https://www.anthonycollins.com/insights/webinars-and-podcasts/hold-rethinking-deprivation-of-liberty/
SCIE are holding an online event ‘What the Supreme Court’s deprivation of liberty judgement means for social care’ on 15 July 2026, 3-4pm. You can register for this here: https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/a560c013-31ac-494e-842a-5cd147dbd47f@5826dbee-d35f-4a5d-8aa3-cf1e9b54efe6