Civil

Civil

Capacity is an issue- and time-specific question. A mentally incapacitated person (MIP) may not be capable of executing a will, but he/she may be capable of getting married. 

There are different standards—or a “hierarchy” of levels—of capacity applied to different situations. Marriage was described as the essence of simplicity and does not require a high degree of intelligence to comprehend. But there is a distinction between (a) the decisions a person makes regarding personal matters such as where or with whom to live and (b) decisions regarding financial matters.  Financial matters require a higher level of understanding.  Put another way, the capacity to marry is a lower threshold than the capacity to manage one’s own affairs, make a will, or instruct counsel: In the Estate of Lui Kwan Cheung [2020] HKCFI 1243 (this point was not overturned on appeal to CA, or to the CFA).