Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-1996
Abstract
Placement in a mental health facility may be made through either a voluntary or involuntary commitment. Involuntary commitment usually requires a number of protective safeguards, including a court hearing, the appointment of counsel, and the meeting of a statutory criterion such as danger to self or others. Voluntary commitment is much more informal, with a written application and clinical assessment being all that is normally required. Most voluntary commitments are made upon application.of a patient who has the ability to give informed consent. But in a substantial number of states an individual also may be committed by his or her guardian, in some cases with little or no court oversight.
Recommended Citation
David M. English,
The Authority of a Guardian to Commit an Adult Ward, 20 Mental and Physical Disability Law Reporter 584
(1996).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/facpubs/787