Law and Mental Health: A Case-based Approach

Favored by instructors and students for its real-world focus and engaging style, this authoritative text on the interface of psychology and law has now been revised and expanded. Each chapter provides an overview of case law on an important topic and explores selected cases in depth. Coverage includes psychological and mental health issues in criminal and civil proceedings; the role of practitioners as expert witnesses and forensic consultants; and legal concerns in general clinical practice. Salient legal processes and decisions are summarized and implications for today's clinical and forensic practitioners highlighted. Instructors who adopt the book for courses will receive a supplemental test bank with questions keyed to each chapter. Students can access a downloadable Study Guide. 
 
New to This Edition
*Updated throughout with current research and substantive changes in mental health law.
*Chapter on competency in juvenile justice.
*Citations of 115 new legal cases.
*Conclusion identifying urgent social challenges facing the field.
 
Pedagogical Features
*Boxes on key concepts and areas of controversy.  
*"Where are They Now?" boxes revisiting people from landmark cases. 
*Updated test bank and new downloadable Study Guide.
*End-of-chapter lists of legal cases discussed.

Christopher M. Weaver, PhD, is Associate Professor and Director of the Forensic Psychology Program in the Department of Psychology at Palo Alto University, where he teaches in the areas of forensic psychology, research methods, and statistics. He has held research positions in the Departments of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, and Stanford University, along with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD in Menlo Park, California. Dr. Weaver’s publications and research interests center on law enforcement training and the assessment of malingered posttraumatic stress disorder.
 
Robert G. Meyer, PhD, ABPP, is Professor Emeritus at the University of Louisville. He is board certified in both clinical and forensic psychology and is a Fellow of Division 12 (Society of Clinical Psychology) and Division 41 (American Psychology–Law Society) of the American Psychological Association. Dr. Meyer has published over 60 articles, 23 book chapters, and 14 books. He is past editor of the Bulletin of the American Academy of Forensic Psychology and past president of the Kentucky Psychological Association. Dr. Meyer is a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Academy of Forensic Psychology and a corecipient of a regional Grawemeyer Award for innovative curriculum development.