On Friday March 8th, the LML hosted the 2019 Baron de Lancey Lecture, kindly sponsored by the Ver Heyden de Lancey Fund.
This year, Dr Imogen Goold (St Anne's College, University of Oxford) delivered her thought-provoking talk 'Should parents have the final say on the medical treatment of their children?'
Dr Goold's talk addressed a question that has received significant media attention following the recent court cases concerning Charlie Gard and Alfie Evans. Namely, who should have the final say over the treatment of a very ill child who is too young to express their own preferences? In describing why this question might be viewed as a 'live issue', Dr Goold cited the emotive public reaction to such cases, which expressed a sense of parents feeling disempowered. Moreover, running in parallel to this strong public response are theoretical debates within the academic literature about the point at which it is appropriate for the courts to step into such situations.
In an energetic Q&A session, Dr Goold engaged with audience questions in a robust and thoughtful way. Interested readers are encouraged to view the lecture.
Video recording of the lecture is available here and on the University SMS site.