[D66] The compliant court — Procedural fairness and social control in compulsory community care

[René Oudeweg]

[In 99% van de gevallen wordt de mening van de psychiater overgenomen 
door de rechter in Zweden. In Nederland is het niet anders. Deze scheve 
machtsbalans is veroorzaakt door die nitwits van politici en een 
klootzak van een koning die zomaar zijn handtekening onder de Wvggz 
heeft gezet zonder zich te informeren. Wanneer gaan er eindelijke eens 
koppen rollen?]




The compliant court — Procedural fairness and social control in 
compulsory community care
Author links open overlay panelLiv Zetterberg, Stefan Sjöström, Urban 
Markström

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2014.02.027

Abstract
Compulsory community care (CCC) was introduced in Sweden in 2008. This 
article investigates all written court decisions regarding CCC over a 6 
month period in 2009 (N = 541). The purpose is to examine how the legal 
rights of patients are protected and what forms of social control 
patients are subjected to.
51% of CCC patients are women and 84% are being treated for a 
psychosis-related disorder. In the court decisions, only 9% of patients 
are described as dangerous to themselves, while 18% are regarded a 
danger to others. The most common special provisions that patients are 
subjected to are medication (79%) and a requirement that they must 
maintain contact with either community mental health services (51%) or 
social services (27%).
In the decisions, both the courts and court-appointed psychiatrists 
agree with treating psychiatrists in 99% of cases. Decisions lack 
transparency and clarity, and it is often impossible to understand the 
conclusions of the courts. There is considerable variation between 
regional courts as regards the provisions to which patients are 
subjected and the delegation of decision-making to psychiatrists. This 
means that decisions fail to demonstrate clarity, transparency, 
consistency and impartiality, and thus fail to meet established 
standards of procedural fairness.
Surveillance techniques of social control are more common than 
techniques based on therapy or sanctions. Because of the unique role of 
medication, social control is primarily imposed on a physical dimension, 
as opposed to temporal and spatial forms.
The article concludes that patients are at risk of being subjected to 
new forms of social control of an unclear nature without proper legal 
protection.