Law reports for psychiatrists

Abstract

The article briefly describes the structure of the civil courts in England and Wales and explains how laws are drafted. This information is used as a basis for understanding the rule of precedent: how earlier court decisions may be binding in later cases. The article explains what law reports are, how cases are reported in the legal literature and how they may be located and cited. A number of key cases are summarised to illustrate the process of judicial reasoning and to show how case law contributes to psychiatric practice and defines the legal structure of medical work. A list of useful legal websites is given.