The social security appointee system.
Abstract The aim of this article is to analyse the operation of the social security appointee system, evaluating it from the point of view of the claimant, the appointee and the public. Consideration is given to the criteria for appointment, the appointment process, the effect of the appointment and the controls after an appointment is made. The Law Commission's proposals in relation to the appointee system are discussed and further suggestions are made for reform. The background research to the article has focused on the Northern Ireland appointee system which is identical to that operated in Great Britain.
Charging and quasi-markets in community care: Implications for elderly people with dementia
Social services authorities in the UK are increasingly involved in charging and fee collection activities with clients in receipt of community care services. This article explores the implications of these developments for elderly people with dementia. The starting point of the article is a critique of existing legal and administrative options for handling other people's money, including the difficulties and dilemmas raised for both paid and unpaid carers by the existing arrangements. This is then related to the failure of charging and fee collection systems which have developed as a result of the community care reforms to address the particular needs of elderly people with dementia. A case study of policies in one local authority is outlined and this is followed by the presentation of the view of 37 fieldlevel professionals who were interviewed in focus groups. The concerns of these respondents included the complexity of the assessment task, conflicts between care managers and finance/revenue staff, the difficulty of defining and responding to financial abuse, and dilemmas over the extent to which relatives and carers should be trusted. The final section of the article considers the implications of a move to quasi-markets in social care for elderly people with dementia, particularly in terms of their vulnerability to financial exploitation.
The Law of Failure
If a broker-dealer liquidates in federal bankruptcy court, why does an insurance company liquidate in state court, and a bank outside of court altogether? Why do some businesses re-organize under state law 'assignments', rather than the more well-known Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code? Why do some laws use the language of bankruptcy but without advancing policy goals of the Bankruptcy Code? In this illuminating work, Stephen J. Lubben tackles these questions and many others related to the collective law of business insolvency in the United States. In the first book of its kind, Lubben notes the broad similarities between the many insolvency systems in the United States while describing the fundamental differences lurking therein. By considering the whole sweep of these laws - running the gamut from Chapter 11 to obscure receivership provisions of the National Bank Act - readers will acquire a fundamental understanding of the 'law of failure'.