Judge urges ‘living wills’ in ‘sad’ elderly care case

A High Court judge has suggested that people should be compelled to make “living wills” – advance statements of wishes in the event of serious incapacitating illness.

Mr Justice Francis, who is based in the Family Division of the High Court in London and also oversees hearings in the Court of Protection, suggested that a campaign to educate people about living wills would be a good move.

He was speaking as he oversaw a dispute about the treatment of a pensioner who is in a minimally conscious state at a hearing in the Court of Protection – where judges consider issues about people who lack the mental capacity to make decisions – in London yesterday.

“It should be compulsory that we all have to make living wills because these cases would be resolved much more easily,” Mr Justice Francis told lawyers.

The judge added: “If there was some sort of campaign to educate people about these sort of things I think people would actually do something about it.”

He said the pensioner at the centre of the case he was overseeing could not be identified.

The pensioner is in his eighties and bosses at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust have asked for a ruling on treatment.

Mr Justice Francis said the man’s family had been in “great conflict” with hospital staff over treatment.

The judge said there had been “intimidation” and “nurses in tears”.

He said the case was “very, very sad”.