About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

18 Med. L. Int'l 3 (2018)

handle is hein.journals/medclint18 and id is 1 raw text is: MEDICAL LAW.. Article I NTERN ATI ON AL Medical Law International 2018, Vol. 18(I) 3-34 Rethinking necessity and best K The Author(s) 2018 interests in New Zealand Reprints and permission: sagepub.co.uld/jou rnalsPermissions.nav apa city laDOI: 10.1 177/0968533218762240 ment capacity law journals.sagepub.com/home/mli OSAGE Alison Douglass Barristers Chambers and Bioethics Centre, University of Otago, New Zealand Abstract This article considers the hard-earned lessons that New Zealand might draw from developments in English mental capacity law that should inform a comprehensive review of New Zealand's equivalent adult guardianship legislation, the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and the shift towards supported decision-making, requires State parties to rethink domestic laws and engage with the key concepts of this important human rights convention. The most significant development under the Mental Capacity Act (England and Wales) 2005 is the identification of the so-called 'Bournewood gap' and the realization that the common law doctrine of necessity provides inadequate procedural safeguards for people with impaired capacity who are unable to consent or object to their healthcare and living arrangements. In addition, the 'best interests' standard for decision-making in English law has evolved with a greater emphasis on support for the exercise of a person's legal capacity into this standard. This article argues that these developments should influence reform of New Zealand's mental capacity law. Keywords Best interests, necessity, supported decision-making, mental capacity, Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988 (NZ) Received 17 November 2017; Revised 4 February 2018; Accepted 8 February 2018 Corresponding author: Alison Douglass, Barristers Chambers and Bioethics Centre, University of Otago, PO Box 5117, Dunedin, Otago 9058, New Zealand. Email: alison.douglass@barristerschambers.co.nz

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most