The legal capacity of patients with Alzheimer's disease

Background As human life extends, problems affecting people over the age of 60 are becoming an important challenge for scientists. One of the biggest threats to these people is the risk of Alzheimer's disease. This is not only a medical, but also a sociological, psychological and legal problem. One of the most important problems in legal sciences is the issue of legal capacity. It defines when a particular person has the ability to acquire rights and incur obligations under civil law. Usually a person achieves legal capacity at the age of majority. Another factor that affects having legal capacity is the occurrence of a mental illness. The progressive symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, such as memory loss or lack of awareness about one's life situation, significantly limit patient competence to knowingly acquire rights and incur obligations. Methods The research was carried out using the method of analyzing scientific literature in the field of medicine, medical law and civil law. Results There is no doubt that in the first phase of Alzheimer's disease the patient has legal capacity. The patient's situation in the third phase, i.e. dementia due to Alzheimer's disease, is also clear ‐ he no longer has legal capacity. The second phase, i.e. Mild cognitive impairment, is problematic from a legal point of view. It is difficult to unequivocally assess the patient's competence to consciously acquire rights and incur obligations. Each time in such a situation, a court that assesses a person's legal capacity should seek the opinion of expert neurologists and psychiatrists to determine the person's state of consciousness. Conclusions Alzheimer's disease affects a person's legal capacity. The assessment of whether a person is able to consciously acquire rights and incur obligations should always belong to the doctors and lawyers cooperating with each other.