Caroline is a practising solicitor with over 35 years experience of advising older and vulnerable adults and is recognised as a leading expert on the Mental Capacity Act 2005, Deputyships, Lasting Powers of Attorney and health and social care law.
Caroline is well known nationally as being an engaging and highly regarded public speaker. She delivers training for many legal CPD providers, including Central Law Training International, MBL, The Solicitors Group, Professional Conferences and STEP, as well as In House for Legal 500 practices.
Caroline is the former Chief Executive and former Chair of Solicitors for the Elderly (SFE), an organisation she helped to found in 1999. Caroline was given a Life time Achievement Award by SFE in their 20th year and remains a full accredited member. SFE is now called the Association of Lifetime Lawyers.
She is a full member of The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners and a member of their Mental Capacity Special Interest Group. Caroline won both the Trusted Advisor of the Year and the Vulnerable Client Advisory Practice of the Year at the STEP Private Client Awards 2017/18 and was a finalist in the 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 Vulnerable Client Advisory Practice Category. She was given an Outstanding Achievement Award at the 2023 Modern Law Private Client Award for her policy and practice work on lasting powers of attorney.
For over 25 years Caroline provided advice and support services for law firms to troubleshoot in complex cases involving vulnerable clients, where the interplay between their capacity, care arrangements, care funding, safeguarding and disputes may arise. She is also an experienced mediator and specialised in Court of Protection and health and social care mediation. She has mediated in a wide range of disputes, ranging from contact, residency, deputyships, attorneyships and health and social care funding. She retired from providing consultancy and mediation at the end of 2024.
Caroline is an honorary member of the Professional Deputies Forum and a member of the National Mental Capacity Forum.
Caroline was a Director of the Financial Vulnerability Taskforce, now known as the Consumer Duty; a Community Interest Company with the aim of promoting greater understanding, encouraging appropriate behaviours and establishing good practice in respect of consumer vulnerability for those working in the personal finance industry.
Caroline is trained to use Makaton signs and symbols for clients who struggle to use spoken language, and writes Easy Read legal information to empower those who struggle to otherwise access legal services.
Caroline is editor, author and contributor of numerous leading legal text books on capacity and advising the older client:
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