Law, Psychiatry and psychology : a selection of constitutional, medico-legal and liability issues

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to develop a comprehensive process for identifying and addressing primarily constitutional, medico-legal and liability issues, and in addition ethical, social and scientific issues related to the psychiatric and psychology professions in South Africa. In fulfilling this purpose, a comprehensive search is conducted of relevant historical, ethical, philosophical and clinical aspects pertaining to psychiatry and psychology, as well as an evaluation of the current juridical framework regarding the legal liability of the psychiatrist and psychologist balanced against the constitutional rights of the mentally disordered patient in South Africa. Recommendations are made for the establishment of any new controls needed to mitigate and prevent the exposure of mentally disordered patients, further attempting to provide specific remedies to adapt the current juridical framework in South Africa. The examination is conducted within the framework of the South African and United Kingdom's legal systems. Focus is placed on aspects of medical law, human rights law (as envisaged in the Bill of Rights in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996), criminal law and the law of delict and, to a lesser extent, administrative law and the law of evidence.