Justice for All: Challenges of the Mentally Ill in the Legal System

Representing clients with mental illness is a challenging task that requires specialized skills and knowledge that few attorneys receive in law school. Yet, with jails and prisons becoming repositories for hundreds of thousands of mentally ill people each year, the unprecedented growth of the world s elderly population (and its often accompanying cognitive decline), and the higher incidence of domestic violence, substance abuse, and child abuse allegations in family law matters, such skills and knowledge are critical to competent and effective representation in all areas of legal practice. In Justice for All, Dr. Sherrie Bourg Carter uses her eighteen years of experience working with mentally ill clients in the legal system to provide attorneys and law students with: step-by-step guidelines for identifying diminished capacity in clients; easy-to-understand descriptions of diagnostic jargon; explanations of mental diagnoses most common to criminal, civil, and family law cases and their legal relevance; practical strategies for dealing with difficult, agitated, and paranoid clients; and effective strategies for managing personality disordered clients. Appendices include an attorney checklist for possible mental health issues, a glossary of common mental health terms, and a list of commonly prescribed medications for mental illnesses.