Mental Capacity Law, Sexual Relations, and Intimacy

Description

In this webinar, Bev Clough and Laura Pritchard-Jones will introduce their new edited collection, Mental Capacity Law, Sexual Relations, and Intimacy (Bristol University Press). Questions as to the mental capacity of an individual to consent to sex are an increasingly important aspect of legal scholarship and professional practice for those working in care. The Supreme Court judgment in Re JB added new layers of complexity, requiring that a person must be able to understand that the other person needs to consent and can withdraw that consent. While this has been welcomed for asserting the importance of the interpersonal dynamics of sex, it has significant implications for practice and for the day-to-day lives of people with cognitive impairments. We will give an overview of what prompted the collection, and reflect on the themes that emerge through the chapters. We will also reflect on how law has developed since the decision in Re JB and some of the remaining problems this poses.