WPA Section on Psychiatry, Law and Ethics

2 major scientific meetings are planned for 2012.

• A conference on Mental Health, Law and Ethics, as part of the World Congress on Medical Law (in collaboration with the World Association for Medical Law), to be held in Maceio, Brazil August 7-11 2012.
• A regional congress is planned to be held in Jerusalem towards the end of 2012.

In 2011, Many new professionals joined the Section, thus allowing for its reinstatement process to go smoothly. The following activities are planned (or were already done) this year:

• Three of the section members published their collaborative work on Sex offenders in the Prison settings at the J Am Acad Psychiatry Law (see:http://www.jaapl.org/cgi/content/abstract/39/1/100)
• An online section meeting will be held by the end of October 2011.
• A special Symposium of the Section will be held on 25 November 2011 during the National Portuguese Psychiatric Congress, held by the Portuguese Psychiatry and Mental Health Association. (See: http://www.cnpsiquiatria2011.com/paginas/programa.php)
  Symposia topic: Capacity and competence – Between Psychaitry, Law and Ethics
  Lectures
  Dr. Tal Bergman Levy, “Testamentary capacity in Schizopgrenia patients”
  Dr. Horácio Firmino, “Ethics, capacity and decision-making in the pratice of old age psychiatry”
  Adv. Oren Asman, “Redefining the concept of competence”.
  Panel Discussion

The Section’s Activities were revived during 2010.

During this year, The following activites were done in close cooperation with the World Association for Medical Law (WAML):

1. Two Sessions on Psychiatry, Law and Ethics during the 18th World Congress for Medical Law, Zagreb, August 2010.

2. A Webcast interview On Mental Disability Law, with Prof. Michael Perlin (See: http://www.wamlradio.org/perlin/)

3. A Newsletter mainly focused on Mental Health, Law and Ethics (See:  http://www.wamlradio.org/newsletters/v2i2.pdf)