Medical jurisprudence

Medical jurisprudence or legal medicine is the branch of science and medicine involving the study and application of scientific and medical knowledge to legal problems, such as inquests, and in the field of law. As modern medicine is a legal creation, regulated by the state, and medicolegal cases involving death, rape, paternity, etc. require a medical practitioner to produce evidence and appear as an expert witness, these two fields have traditionally been interdependent.

Forensic medicine, which includes forensic pathology, is a narrower field that involves collection and analysis of medical evidence (samples) to produce objective information for use in the legal system.

History

Medical jurisprudence had a chair founded at the University of Edinburgh in 1807, first occupied by Andrew Duncan, the younger. It was imposed on the university by the Edinburgh Town Council under a scheme to preserve the town's reputation against the upstart Glasgow, Aberdeen and St. Andrews, where there were no medical jurisprudence chairs.

Scope

The scope of the field involves the application of medical knowledge to legal problems, including issues of medical ethics, and regulation of medical practice by law.

See also

• Forensic pathology
• Medical ethics
• Medical law
• Expert witness

References

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