Legal Definitions - incapacitated person

An incapacitated person is an individual whose ability to make and communicate informed personal decisions is severely compromised or impossible due to a significant impairment. This impairment can stem from various causes, such as severe intoxication, a profound mental health condition, an intellectual disability, or a debilitating physical illness or injury. The key characteristic is that the person cannot understand the relevant information, appreciate the consequences of their choices, or express their wishes regarding important personal matters like healthcare, finances, or living arrangements.

Here are some examples illustrating what it means to be an incapacitated person:

• Example 1: Acute Medical Emergency

  A person is found unconscious after a severe allergic reaction, requiring immediate medical intervention. They are unable to respond to paramedics, understand their condition, or consent to treatment.

  How this illustrates the term: In this scenario, the individual's physical state (unconsciousness due to a medical emergency) renders them completely unable to make or communicate decisions about their own healthcare, fitting the definition of an incapacitated person.

• Example 2: Advanced Cognitive Decline

  An elderly individual with advanced Alzheimer's disease frequently gets lost, cannot recognize close family members, and is unable to manage their daily medications or financial affairs, often giving money away to strangers or forgetting to pay bills.

  How this illustrates the term: The severe cognitive impairment caused by Alzheimer's disease prevents this person from understanding their circumstances, appreciating the consequences of their actions (like giving away money), or making sound decisions about their personal safety, finances, or care, thus rendering them incapacitated.

• Example 3: Severe Mental Health Crisis

  During an acute psychotic episode, an individual experiences severe delusions and hallucinations, believing that their food is poisoned and refusing all nourishment, and is unable to engage in rational conversation about their well-being or accept help.

  How this illustrates the term: The profound mental illness in this acute state prevents the person from understanding reality, appreciating the need for care, or making decisions that are in their own best interest regarding their health and safety, classifying them as an incapacitated person.