NCJ Number
145866
Journal
Journal of Elder Abuse and Neglect Volume: 2 Issue: 3-4 Dated: (1990) Pages: 15-31
Date Published
1990
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This article reviews various writings that have attempted to find a definition for decisional capacity and for assessing whether a person lacks such capacity.
Abstract
Before a guardian or conservator can be appointed by a court to act on behalf of an individual, the court must decide that the person lack the mental capacity to make his or her own decisions. This article focuses on a few recent selections from the voluminous literature on the subject of defining and assessing decisional capacity particularly for the elderly. It attempts to find some common thread in the current thinking on the subject. The common themes that emerge from the various legal and medical writings are discussed.