,

Townsend v. Epsom NHS Trust [2026] EWCA Civ 195

‘Any decision about the care and treatment of a mentally incapacitated adult, including the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment, must be taken in the patient’s best interests… If there is disagreement, “a court application can and should be made”… The hospital cannot pre-empt court proceedings by unilaterally withholding or withdrawing treatment on “clinical” grounds’: https://caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewca/civ/2026/195