AN INDIA Buildings barrister is celebrating after the first copies of his new book rolled off the presses.
Jonathan Butler hopes Mental Health Tribunals, Law, Practice and Procedure will be a concise guide to his specialist field.
He said: “Last year, the entire mental health tribunal system changed. There are all sorts of systems and the Government brought them all under one umbrella. It seemed to me to be a good time to write a guide to the practice area.
“It’s intended as a practical guide – not only for lawyers but also for anyone who’s involved in a case as a patient.
“It’s not an academic text book. It covers the development of the law over the past 20 years.
“It sets out not just the abstract law but very basic things such as what you call people at a tribunal, up to the more sophisticated stuff.”
The book covers how tribunals organise themselves and who takes part, their procedures and jurisdiction, cases involving both offender and non-offender patients, and has supporting materials including extracts from relevant acts.
Mr Butler, 50, and who lives in Warrington, has been a member of India Buildings since 1992.
The 489-page book is published by Jordans and costs £65.
