Law, Ethics, and Medicine: Essays in honour of Peter Skegg

Described as ‘one of the two fathers of medical law’, Professor Peter Skegg has been a leading figure in the study of law and medicine. Over a 46 year academic career at the University of Auckland, University of Oxford, and the University of Otago, Professor Skegg has helped develop the field of medical law into a burgeoning academic discipline and has provided intellectual guardianship for the practice of law and medicine. This collection brings together contemporaries, colleagues, and former students of Professor Skegg to celebrate his enduring contribution to the study of medical law.

This edited collection contains twelve essays written by a range of internationally recognised medical lawyers. The topics cover the regulation of medical practitioners, consent, rights in bodily material, euthanasia, compensation and ethical approval for medical research, treatment orders for mental health conditions, and surrogacy laws. Whilst some of the essays return to territory that has been initially surveyed by Peter’s research and analysis, others touch upon some wider medical law topics, illustrating Peter’s lasting contribution to medical law as well as mapping out some of the new frontiers for the discipline of medical law.

Academics, students and practitioners, from a range of jurisdictions, who are interested in how the law governs the provision of healthcare will benefit reading the various essays contained here. In addition, anyone who has had the good fortune of working with, or learning from, Professor Skegg will also enjoy the opportunity to return to the field of study that he founded.

Introduction by Jesse Wall

1. The Criminal Process and Medical Practitioners: Shield and Sword
   by Margaret Brazier
2. Peter Skegg and the Question No-One Asks: Why Presume Capacity?
   by Jonathan Herring
3. Proprietary Rights in Human Bodily Material: Recent Developments
   by Loane Skene
4. Debating Euthanasia: A Reply to Emily Jackson
   by John Keown
5. The Future of Medically Hastened Death in Canada: Why and How We Should Avoid the Mortal Flaws of Belgium’s Euthanasia Regime
   by Trudo Lemmens & Elizabeth Kurz
6. Lifting Our Gaze: An Epidemiological Approach to Medical Regulation
   by Marie Bismark
7. If Thy Leg Offend Thee, Cut It Off: Surgery, Consent and the Criminal Law
   by Josephine Johnston
8. Without Legal Commitment”: Compensation for Research-Related Injury in Commercially Sponsored Clinical Trials in New Zealand
   by Joanna Manning
9. Health and Disability Research Ethics Committees in New Zealand: Will the Current System Prevent Another ‘Unfortunate Experiment’?
   by Nicola Peart
10. The Powers Conferred by Community Treatment Orders
    by John Dawson
11. Genes Versus Gestation: Protecting the Interests of Surrogate Mothers
    by Mark Henaghan, Ruth Ballantyne, & Devon Helm
12. In What Sense 'Rights'? Principles ofJustice and  the Code of Patients' Rights
    by Jesse  Wall