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Mental capacity is a person’s ability to make decisions for themselves at the time a decision needs to be made.
A person has mental capacity if they can understand, retain, and weigh up relevant information to make a decision, and communicate that decision. Capacity is decision-specific and can fluctuate over time.
Legal Reference:
- Defined in the Mental Capacity Act 2005, which sets out the principles and framework for assessing capacity.
Sources:
- Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_capacity_in_England_and_Wales
- Wikidata – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_capacity_in_England_and_Wales
- Knowledge Graph – https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/g/11fylkbq3x
- Legislation.gov.uk – https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/9/contents
- Product Ontology – http://www.productontology.org/id/Mental_capacity_in_England_and_Wales
