LAW 803LEC - Psychiatry and the Law

This class will focus on providing an introduction to legal situations that intersect with psychiatric illness, and lead to forensic evaluations and testimony. There will be an introduction to the most common psychiatric conditions that lead to the involvement of psychiatrists and other mental health professionals in legal cases. We will discuss: 1. Competency to stand trial 2. Criminal Responsibility (Insanity Defense) and Extreme Emotional Disturbance 3. Understanding the delivery of mental health treatment in institutional settings such as correctional facilities and psychiatric hospitals and the role of treatment courts. 4. Retaining and working effectively and ethically with forensic psychiatrists and other mental health expert witnesses.

Credits: 2