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Selected Works

Darius Whelan

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Medical Jurisprudence

Diversion Of Offenders With Mental Disorders: Mental Health Courts, Sarah Ryan, Darius Whelan Feb 2012

Diversion Of Offenders With Mental Disorders: Mental Health Courts, Sarah Ryan, Darius Whelan

Darius Whelan

At present, if people with mental disorders appear before the criminal courts in Ireland, unless they are unfit for trial or not guilty by reason of insanity, the system governing their case will be the general one which applies to all criminal cases. In recent decades, a number of other common law jurisdictions have begun to set up mental health courts as a means of diverting some people with mental disorders from the criminal justice system and into more appropriate treatment. This article begins with a review of the background to mental health courts, focusing on the concept of diversion …

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Can The Right To Personal Liberty Be Interpreted In A Paternalistic Manner? : Cases On The Mental Health Act 2001, Darius Whelan Nov 2011

Can The Right To Personal Liberty Be Interpreted In A Paternalistic Manner? : Cases On The Mental Health Act 2001, Darius Whelan

Darius Whelan

The Mental Health Act 2001 introduced major reforms of Ireland’s civil mental health law and instigated a new era for those detained in psychiatric hospitals and units. The main focus of the Act was improvement of the legal regime concerning involuntary detention of persons with mental disorders, an area of law which concerns a number of constitutional and human rights, particularly the right to personal liberty. One of the most surprising aspects of the case law interpreting the Act has been that the courts have referred on numerous occasions to the need to interpret the Act in a “paternalistic” manner. …

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Fitness For Trial In The District Court: The Legal Perspective, Darius Whelan Aug 2007

Fitness For Trial In The District Court: The Legal Perspective, Darius Whelan

Darius Whelan

This paper concentrates on fitness for trial in the District Court and deals with the topic under two main headings: firstly, how does the District Court determine fitness for trial and secondly, the consequences of a finding of unfitness for trial. Ireland's Criminal Law (Insanity) Act 2006 introduced significant reforms to this area of law, and the implications for the District Court are reviewed.

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