Deprivation of Liberty orders
Source: gov.uk (2025-04-07)

How to apply to the Court of Protection to challenge an order restricting someone's freedom or get a deprivation of liberty authorised.

Overview

This guide offers information about Deprivation of Liberty orders for:
- people in residential care or hospital challenging an order authorised by a local authority
- legal professionals working for public authorities getting an order authorised for a person who isn’t living in residential care or a hospital
Challenge a standard or urgent authorisation

You must apply to the Court of Protection if you want to challenge a standard or urgent authorisation that has deprived someone lacking mental capacity of their liberty.

You may want to do this if you think:
- the order may not have been authorised properly
- this action is not in the person’s best interests
- the person has mental capacity to decide their own treatment
Find out more about Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. (https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/info/20032/legal_and_financial/129/deprivation_of_liberty_safeguards_dols/3)

To apply to the court, you need to fill in these forms:
- application form - COPDLA (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-cop-dla-deprivation-of-liberty-application-form-for-urgent-consideration)
- declaration of exceptional emergency - COPDLB (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-cop-dlb-deprivation-of-liberty-declaration-of-exceptional-urgency)
- certificate of service/non-service - COPDLD (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-cop-dld-deprivation-of-liberty-certificate-of-service-non-service-certificate-of-notification-non-notification)
- acknowledgment of service/notification - COPDLE (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-cop-dle-acknowledgment-of-service-notification)
You can find more guidance in the practice direction. (https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/publications/practice-direction-11a-deprivation-of-liberty-applications-effective-from-1-december-2017/)

Apply for authorisation

If the person who lacks mental capacity doesn’t live in a care home or hospital but is being deprived of their liberty, you must apply to the court to get an order authorising the restriction of their freedom.

To do this, use application form - COP DOL11. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-copdol11-application-to-authorise-a-deprivation-of-liberty-sections-4a3-and-162a-of-the-mental-capacity-act-2005)

You’ll find more guidance in the practice direction. (https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/publications/practice-direction-11a-deprivation-of-liberty-applications-effective-from-1-december-2017)

Cases that involve more than just deprivation of liberty

If there are a number of decisions the court needs to consider - eg about care and where someone should live - you should apply for a personal welfare decision (https://www.gov.uk/oneoff-decision-personal-welfare).

Where to send your forms

Send your application forms to your local Court of Protection hub with a cheque for £421 made payable to HM Courts and Tribunals Service.

Find complete details about the Court of Protection and hub addresses (https://www.gov.uk/court-of-protection).

What happens next

After the court receives your forms, staff will contact you with an order or information about what to do next.

They’ll also tell you if you need to come to a hearing.

If you have an urgent query after you have made your application, please call the Court of Protection hub.