The Changing Role of the Federal and State Courts in Safeguarding the Rights of the Mentally Disabled

Abstract

From the mid-1960s until the early 1980s, federal courts have greatly expanded the rights of persons who have been institutionalized for treatment of mental illness. The rights have included due process in commitment proceedings, provision of services, and treatment in the least restrictive environment. Federal courts have based their decisions on federal statutes and constitutionalprinciples of due process, equal protection, and protection from harm. More recently, however, the U.S. Supreme Court has effectively closed the federal courts as a forum for advancing the rights of the mentally disabled. Federal courts must, in essence, defer to the states for decisions about treatment of the mentally disabled. State courts may decide what services are required under state law, while state mental health officials may decide specific treatment questions for individual patients. Consequently, advocates for the mentally disabled are turning to state courts to advance client rights. In 1984 two significant cases decided by the New York State Court of Appeals have the potential for significantly expanding the rights of the mentally disabled.