NCJ Number
140007
Date Published
1992
Length
241 pages
Annotation
This document is the culmination of a 3-year project designed to provide practical assistance to State trial court judges asked to resolve cases that involve life- sustaining medical treatment (LSMT).
Abstract
The first edition addressed cases that involve adult patients. This second edition was expanded to address issues that involve minors, as well as some other issues not addressed in the first edition such as religious objections to treatment, the cost of treatment, and the administration of futile treatment. The guidelines are divided into five sections. They include issues that arise once a potential litigant knocks on the courtroom door but before a formal judicial trial is held, issues related to the judicial hearings held in LSMT cases, and issues that may arise after the court has issued its determination. A fourth section addresses issues uniquely applicable to cases that involve minors. A fifth section addresses policies and practices that shape LSMT caseflows and caseloads, rather than individual LSMT cases. The last section speaks to the judicial system as a whole and to the legal community in general; it identifies principles that can assist or promote the legal and judicial systems' abilities to respond to LSMT cases. Appendixes are intended as information aids, both in assisting judges to locate relevant materials quickly and by helping judges understand some of the key issues raised. Subject index