14. Abortion

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter examines the law on abortion, beginning with a survey of the ongoing debate over the moral legitimacy of abortion. It then examines the current legal position, and considers how the Abortion Act 1967, as amended, works in practice. It looks at recent controversies over sex-selective abortion and considers the prospects for law reform. Finally, the chapter looks briefly at the regulation of abortion in Northern Ireland, Ireland, and the United States.

12. Organ Transplantation

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter discusses organ transplantation. It first considers cadaveric donation, looking at who may become a donor, and which organs can be taken. It also includes discussion of the issues raised by novel transplants, like face and uterus transplantation. The chapter summarizes the system of organ retrieval in the UK, looking at the consent-based model adopted in the Human Tissue Act 2004; the introduction of an opt-out system in Wales, and the government’s plan to introduce a similar system in England. It then turns to living organ donation, looking at informed consent and the legitimacy, or otherwise, of incentives. Finally, it considers the ethical, practical, and legal obstacles to xenotransplantation, i.e. transplanting animal organs into human recipients.

11. The Regulation of Medicines

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate; providing students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter examines the regulation of medicines. It first explains what a medicine is and the need for it to have a marketing authorization before it can be put into circulation. It covers the importance not only of establishing safety and efficacy before licensing, but afterwards as well, through pharmacovigilance mechanisms. The chapter covers the increasing European harmonization of the rules covering the licensing and marketing of medicines, and briefly discusses the implications of Brexit. Finally, it looks at liability for defective medicines, and the strict liability regime under the Consumer Protection Act.

7. Mental Health Law

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing able students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter discusses mental health law in the UK. It begins with a brief history of mental health law and policy. This is followed by discussions of: admission to the mental health system; treatment of the mentally ill under the Mental Health Act 1983; Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and Cheshire West, and Community Treatment Orders. It also looks at the implications of the Human Rights Act and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) for mental health law. It also considers the conclusions of the Independent Review of the Mental Health Act 1983.

3. Medical Malpractice

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter discusses the law on medical malpractice. It covers breach of contract; establishing a case for negligence and the defences available; problems with clinical negligence; reforming the clinical negligence system; the NHS complaints system; professional regulation; whistleblowing; and criminal liability for gross negligence manslaughter and the new offence of wilful neglect. It also looks at the special issues raised in wrongful pregnancy and wrongful birth cases.

2. The Provision of HealthCare Services: The NHS, Resource Allocation, and Public Health

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing able students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter examines the provision of health care services. It first considers the way in which NHS services are commissioned. Secondly, it covers the issue of resource allocation or rationing. It examines different rationing strategies, and considers the role of the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence, and the use of judicial review to challenge funding decisions. Finally, it examines public health law, and role of the state in encouraging healthy behaviour and addressing health inequalities.

1. An Introduction to Bioethics

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter, which provides an introduction to bioethical reasoning, first explains the meaning of ‘medical ethics’ and the more recent term ‘bioethics’. It then considers how medical ethics has borrowed from different traditions in moral philosophy and varieties of ethical reasoning—from religious bioethics to a feminist ethic of care.

17. Assisted Dying

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter examines assisted dying. It looks at the current law, with particular emphasis upon the pressures currently being exerted on the status quo through British patients travelling to Dignitas in Switzerland for assisted suicides. The implications of the Nicklinson and Conway decisions are considered. The chapter sets out arguments for and against the legalization of voluntary euthanasia and assisted suicide; and examines other countries’ experience with decriminalization.

9. Genetic Information

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter examines the regulation of access to genetic information. It first discusses various third parties’ interests in genetic test results and DNA profiles, and the extent to which genetic privacy is protected by the law. The chapter then considers the issue of whether genetic discrimination should be treated in the same way as other illegitimate discriminatory practices and also discusses recent developments in the field of genetics, namely direct-to-consumer genetic testing and pharmacogenetics.

6. Incapacity II: Children

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate; providing able students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter discusses children’s medical treatment. It looks at the limits of parental decision-making, and cases in which the courts have overruled parental wishes in order to protect the child’s best interests. Where parents cannot agree with each other about serious medical treatment, or where the treatment is especially controversial, decisions might also need to go before a court. Cases involving withdrawing or withholding life-prolonging treatment are also covered. In relation to mature minors, it discusses the concept of Gillick-competence and the difference that has arisen between the child’s right to consent to medical treatment and her much more limited right to refuse.