Depression Law and Ethics

Depression is amorphous. It defies easy generalization, and eludes medical and legal categories. Is it part of the self, or its predator? Can a sufferer be held responsible for their actions? This edited collection provides a holistic study of a protean illness. If the law is to regulate the lives of those who suffer from depression, it is vital that lawyers understand the condition. Drawing upon a wide-ranging expertise, this volume looks at depression from four viewpoints: that of the sufferer, the clinician, the ethicist, and the lawyer. Topics covered include the cultural history of depression; causes, epidemiology, and diagnosis; the autonomy debate; criminal responsibility; public health law; depression in the workplace; depression and children; and assisted suicide. First-hand accounts from sufferers are followed by contributions from clinicians who say what depression is, outline its demography and therapeutic options, and indicate the legal and ethical problems that trouble them the most. The essays then go on to explore legal and ethical questions in depth. This collection is essential reading for lawyers seeking a broader understanding of depression, and non-lawyers seeking an insight into the difficulty law has engaging with the condition.

1 - Depression is not like Anything on Earth
2 - Tristimania
3 - On Being Not Depressed
4 - Depression: Symptomatology, Diagnosis, and Classification
5 - The Aetiology of Depression
6 - A Cultural History of Depression
7 - The Epidemiology of Depression
8 - Depressive Disorders in Childhood and Adolescence
9 - Depression in the Ill and the Dying
10 - The Treatment of Depression: An Overview of the Physical Options
11 - Treatment: An Overview of Talking Therapies
12 - Ethics and Depression: A Personal Perspective
13 - Being Yourself: Authentic Decision-making and Depression
14 - Depressions Plural: Pathology and the Challenge of Values
15 - Is Treating Depression Just Like Treating Appendicitis?
16 - The Impact of Depression on Healthcare Decisions: Autonomy, Capacity, and Competence
17 - Depression in the Developing World
18 - Depression and Consent to Treatment: The Limits of a Capacity-based Approach
19 - Depression and Public Health Law: Ethics, Governance, and the Socio-Political Determinants of Health and Well-being
20 - Legal Regulation of Treatment for Depression
21 - Depression in Criminal Law and Process
22 - Depression and Civil Liability
23 - Depression in the Workplace: An Employment Law Response
24 - Depression and Children
25 - Depression and Assisted Dying: Putting the Black Dog to Sleep?

Charles Foster is a fellow of Green Templeton College and a practising barrister at Serjeants' Inn Chambers. He is a member of the faculty of law, a senior research associate at the Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, and a research associate at the Ethox Centre and the Helex Centre, all at the University of Oxford. His books include: Altruism, Welfare and the Law (with Jonathan Herring), Dementia: Law and Ethics (Editor, with Jonathan Herring and Israel Doron), Medical Law: A Very Short Introduction, Human dignity in bioethics and law, and Choosing Life, choosing Death - The Tyranny of Autonomy in Medical Law and Ethics. As a barrister he has been involved in many leading cases in recent years, including the assisted dying litigation in the House of Lords (Purdy) and the Supreme Court (Nicklinson). Jonathan Herring is a professor of law and fellow of Exeter College at the University of Oxford. He has written many books on issues around medical law and ethics, family law, criminal law, care law, and elder law. A full list of his publications can be found at http://www.law.ox.ac.uk/profile/herringj. His books include A Very Short Introduction to Family Law , Criminal Law, and Older People in Law and Society.