ABSTRACT
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 guides the assessment of capacity for a young person aged 16–17 years. If a young person of 16-17 years is considered to lack capacity in line with Section 2 (1) of the Mental Capacity Act 2005, then the Act applies for the young person just as it does for the adult of 18 years and over. This chapter discusses the parts of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 that do not apply to young people of 16–17 years. Under the terms of the Mental Capacity Act 2005, the young person aged 16–17 years cannot consent to any treatments that are not of direct benefit to their health, such as organ donation and participation in research. Instead, to give their consent to such treatments, the young person would have to be deemed Gillick-competent.
