Forensic Psychiatry

What is Forensic Psychiatry?

Forensic psychiatry is the sub-specialty of psychiatry dealing with the interface between psychiatry and the law. Forensic psychiatrists serve as consultants and expert witnesses for civil and criminal attorneys, the judiciary, government and non-government agencies, and corporations. Some are involved in treating individuals in correctional institutions or in mandated treatment settings.

Our Areas of Expertise

At Forensic Psyciatric Associates Medical Corporation (“FPAMed”), our forensic psychiatrists can be retained as a consultant or expert witness when mental health concerns intersect with legal matters. Areas we cover include:

• criminal responsibility (the “insanity defense”)
• competencies in both criminal and civil matters
• child custody
• fitness for duty
• dangerousness risk assessment and personal injury including assessment of emotional trauma.
• Assessment of Populations in Multi-Plaintiff Litigation (Mass Torts)
• Claims of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Resulting from Natural of Man-Made Catastrophes
• Emotional Distress Resulting from Employment Disputes
• Claims of Employment Wrongful Termination, Retaliation
• Claims of Sexual, Gender, Ethnic, Racial, Age-based Discrimination/Harassment
• Claims of Abuse—Sexual, Spousal, Child, Elder, Racial, Ethnic
• Child Custody Evaluations
• Child Sexual Abuse Evaluations
• Child Trauma Evaluations
• Child Traumatic Brain Injury Evaluations
• Psychological Testing
• Neuropsychological and Pediatric Neuropsychological Testing
• Claims of Excessive Use of Force by Police
• Claims of Psychiatric/Psychological or Psychotherapeutic Malpractice
• Claims of Boundary Violations
• Claims of Wrongful Death from Suicide or Harmful Prescribing of Psychiatric Medication
• Psychopharmacology
• Issues of Substance Abuse/Addiction
• Assessment of Testamentary Capacity/Undue Influence
• Contractual Capacity
• Testimonial Capacity
• Close Head Injury/Traumatic Brain Injury
• Issues Involving Inpatient Psychiatric Care, Psychiatric Inpatient Policies & Procedures
• Assessment of Criminal Capacity to Testify, Enter a Plea, Cooperate with Defense
• Assessment of Criminal Insanity

Our forensic psychiatrist expert is presented with questions that involve the application of psychiatric medicine, technique and information to legal matters sometimes derived from statute or case law. Ethically, a forensic psychiatric evaluation is always necessary when addressing diagnostic issues.

The Psychiatric Evaluation

A forensic psychiatric evaluation employs in-depth interview techniques of clinical psychiatry, but also relies upon collateral sources of information, addresses more prominently the possibility of malingered (feigned) psychiatric illness, and attempts to answer specific medical-legal (psychiatric) questions. The evaluation is not treatment: indeed, the need for objectivity demands that it be performed outside of a treatment relationship.

Our Ethical Code

In the United States, the practice of forensic psychiatry is governed by a strict code of ethics, derived from the Principles of Medical Ethics as codified by the American Medical Association and as applied to psychiatric practice by the American Psychiatric Association and further modified by the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (“AAPL”), the most prominent professional organization for Forensic Psychiatry. AAPL is a subsidiary organization of the American Psychiatric Association. The APA has its own unique Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct.

Forensic Psychiatric Assessment of Multi-Plaintiff “Mass Torts” Claims

Mark I. Levy, MD and other members of the fpamed have conducted over a dozen evaluations of populations involved in multi-plaintiff ligation covering train crashes and other personal injury accident claims, water table pollution, asbestos, mold infestation and other toxic tort claims, as well as civil rights violation claims. fpamed has developed a team approach to screening a potentially injured population (and/or “class”) and then focusing in and performing more detailed forensic assessment of those individuals who appear upon screening to be significantly damaged.

Forensic Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

Anlee Kuo, JD, MD, a forensic child and adolescent psychiatrist and member of the FPAMed team, co-authored a chapter on forensic child and adolescent psychiatry in the Textbook of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Third Edition, American Psychiatric Publishing, Washington, D.C., 2004. The chapter includes the following sections and topics:

• The Changing Status of Children’s Rights
• Overview of the Legal System
• The Forensic Evaluation
• Ethical Issues in the Clinician’s Practice
• Legal Issues in the Clinician’s Practice, including Confidentiality, Privilege, and Duty; Informed Consent & Competence; Civil Commitment; Professional Liability; Child Custody and Divorce; Child Abuse and Neglect;
• The Child as Witness
• Youth Violence
• Dependency, Delinquency, and the Juvenile Court
• School-Related Legal Issues
• References

To download a copy of Dr. Kuo’s chapter, click here.