Form H5 unsigned by RC where Nearest Relative has been displaced

Law and practice Mental Health Act
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1

Hi,

We have a situation whereby a patient who has been detained under Section 3 for many years has been transferred to a different facility. The new facility would not accept the transfer as the H5 form was not signed by the RC, although it has been signed off by the hospital managers.

The patient has therefore been detained under Section 5.2 and is due to be re-assessed.

My issue is that the nearest relative was displaced some years ago and NR responsibilities handed to the Local Authority. The grounds for displacement were Section 29(3)(c) and (d).

My 2 questions are

Does the fact that the H5 form was not signed by the RC which is an admin error invalidate the detention, even though it was accepted and signed off by hospital managers?

If so, does the fact that he is no longer detained under Section 3 mean that the displacement order ceases to have effect?

I am grateful for any assistance and this is not my usual area of law.

2

Any form that is not signed by the person completing it is invalid. If the form is accepted by the hospital managers it is a non-rectifiable error.
It would therefore seem that this patient ceased to be liable for detention on the date that the previous period of detention (the one being renewed by the defective form 5) came to an end.
This would also bring the nearest relative displacement to an end under section 30.(4)(a), meaning the displaced person would again be the patient’s nearest relative (barring changes in circumstances causing anothe person to take precedence).