Notional Hospital Orders and H3

Law and practice Mental Health Act
1

Would there be a seperate Hospital order when 49 restrictions have expired and the Section 47/49 is now a Section 37

2

Hi Emily! When a 49 direction expires and the custodial element ends, the patient is then only on s.47, rather than s.47/49.

For some reason the legal world has decided to call a s.47 a “Notional 37,” even though the patient isn’t actually under a s.37 hospital order. It’s a bit of a misnomer, but that’s the terminology that’s stuck.

3

This is covered in MHA s50. They will remain in hospital AS IF they were subject to an unrestricted hospital order under s37, and it’s generally referred to as a Nominal s37.

4

There is no new Hospital Order issued when the 49 restrictions end. The 47/49 warrant remains as the ‘section papers’, but it will have the sentence end date on it to confirm when the 49 restriction ends.