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Re. F (a mental patient: sterilization) [1990] 2 AC 1, (1989) 4 BMLR 1 (HL)

A 36 year old woman with a mental age of 5-6 years was a voluntary patient in a mental hospital. She had a sexual relationship with another patient. It was feared that she would become pregnant and would not be able to understand the changes which would occur to her body, nor be able to cope with the pregnancy. Lawful sterilisation was granted, as this was in the patient's best interests. The Court of Appeal agreed with this decision, but also recommended that the High Court must be consulted on all such treatments in the future. The House of Lords overruled this need to apply to the courts and stated that the decision on such matters should be left to the doctors, and this therefore empowers doctors. However, the House of Lords stated that as a matter of practice a doctor who intended to perform radical or irreversible treatment should normally 'choose' to make an application to the court, rather than being bound to do so.

Court decision