LAW7 649 - Great Cases in Bioethics

The field of bioethics has developed over the past 30 years as a product of several shifts in American cultural consciousness. The pervasive use of rights-based rhetoric borrowed from the civil rights movement contributed to the evolution in the roles of physicians as they relate to patients. An ongoing conversation about the role of law in medical and scientific practice shaped the current complexion of bioethics as an area of study. This seminar explores a number of critical legal cases in the history of bioethics. Each week will feature a presentation prepared by a student and a discussion period that focuses on one or more seminal cases. Among the topics that will be surveyed are: informed consent (Schloendorf, Cobbs, Canterbury); the “right to die” (Quinlan, Barber, Cruzan); refusal of medical treatment on religious grounds (Jehovah’s Witness and Christian Science cases); civil commitment for the mentally ill (Hendricks); reproductive rights, e.g. sexual sterilization, birth control, abortion, forced treatment of pregnant women (Skinner, Griswold, Roe, A.C., Ferguson); medical confidentiality (Tarasoff, Jaffee); assisted suicide and euthanasia (Quill, Kevorkian); refusal to treat (Baby K.); and genetic technology (Chakrabarty, Moore).

Credits: 3