Holly Mieville-Hawkins

Holly is a passionate defender of the rights of people who lack the mental capacity to make certain decisions for themselves. This is typically as a result of the person suffering a brain injury, or as a result of an illness such as stroke and dementia. Holly has chosen a career that enables her to work on their behalf, as well as for their families, deputies and attorneys.

The issues Holly helps to resolve range from appointing deputies and attorneys, and questions about day to day financial management and gifting, to matters relating to the capacity to marry, purchasing and selling property and making a will. Holly also deals with concerns about financial abuse. She regularly advises on contentious and non-contentious applications to the Court of Protection, and situations where there are complexities involving land and trustees, offshore assets and special trust and tax considerations for vulnerable people.

Alongside her client work, Holly is dedicated to contributing to the shaping of policy regarding mental capacity law, and helps to draft guidance for the profession.

Holly is a founding member of the practitioner group that established the Mediation in the Court of Protection pilot scheme, is Deputy Chair of the Mental Capacity Special Interest Group for STEP; is a member of the Wills and Equity Committee at the Law Society; a member of the South West Court of Protection Practitioners Association and a stakeholder at the Office of the Public Guardian.

Holly holds a full STEP diploma and is an accredited member of Solicitors for the Elderly, holding their Older Client Care in Practice qualification.

Outside of work, Holly spends her time wrangling her small children, going on lengthy countryside walks with her border terrier, Stan, and dreaming of narrowboats.