Law and vulnerability

Teacher(s)

Van Overstraeten Marc;

Language

French

Main themes

The aim is to introduce students to the way in which the law deals with the situation of people who are physically and/or mentally vulnerable. More specifically, the aim is to highlight the legal approach to frailty inherent in disability, frailty inherent in old age and frailty inherent in mental illness.
In this perspective, the course examines selected topics relating to one, several or all of the categories of vulnerable people considered - disabled people, elderly people, people suffering from mental illness. It looks at these issues from the point of view of the fundamental rights of the people concerned, as well as from the point of view of the public policies implemented on their behalf - without neglecting to assess the extent to which these policies reflect these rights.
Through these developments, the course invites students to question society’s view of people in situation of physical or mental vulnerability.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

At the end of this course, students will be able to: identify the legal stakes of physical or mental vulnerability; know, understand and explain the legal framework applicable in the context of the themes covered in relation to physical or mental vulnerability; use these developments to answer legal questions relating to physical and/or mental vulnerability in new contexts not covered in the course; develop a critical position on the legal framework for physical or mental vulnerability and on the action taken by the public authorities regarding people who are physically or mentally vulnerable.

Content

The course provides students with the tools they need to grasp the subject. In particular, it offers an approach to the concepts of vulnerability, disability, old age and mental illness, as well as benchmarks concerning the division of competences relating to policy for the disabled persons, policy for the elderly and provision of mental health care, notably within the Belgian institutional system.
In addition, the following may be examined:
structuring principles whose implementation must be analyzed with regard to all or some of the categories of vulnerable persons envisaged; in this context, the following issues may be addressed, for example:

• from the point of view of equality:
  • the fight against discriminations;
  • "specific measures", "positive actions" or "corrective inequalities" such as the introduction of quotas;
  • the implementation of reasonable accommodations;
     
• from the point of view of autonomy:
  • the diversity of existing forms and structures of lodging, care or support, and the extent to which this diversity make it possible to provide appropriate support for the people concerned, so as to ensure their maximum autonomy;
  • the system’s ability to take account of changes in the condition of the people concerned and to offer them an integrated life course guaranteeing their autonomy;
  • the financial aid granted by the public authorities;

specific issues:

• issues that primarily concern one of the categories of vulnerable people under consideration, such as 
  • the inclusion of disabled people in education;
  • the inclusion of disabled people in the world of work;
  • the access to healthcare for people with mental illness;
• or issues likely to concern several or all of the categories of vulnerable people under consideration, such as
  • the physical or psychological abuse of the people concerned;
  • the relational, emotional and sexual life of the people concerned;
  • the planning, accreditation and funding of lodging, care or support facilities;
  • the governance of lodging, care or support facilities, the ability of their "organizing entity" to continue their work in an increasingly complex legal and social environment, and the support measures required to achieve this;
  • the development of alternatives to institutional living;

and/or specific groups of people, whether they fall into one of the categories of vulnerable people considered or are at the intersection of several of them:

• people with autism;
• people suffering from chronic mental illness;
• elderly disabled people;
• mental disabled people who have a mental illness (dual diagnosis);
• elderly people with a mental illness;
• etc.

The exact content of the course will be determined in the light of current legislation and jurisprudence as well as political developments, on the one hand, and in the light of the themes considered central by the people involved in the approach of situations of disability, old age and/or mental illness, on the other.

Teaching methods

The course is designed to ensure that students participate actively, for example by means of pre-session readings that give them the possibility to interact during the sessions.
For certain topics, actors involved on the ground are invited to give students an insight into the practical implementation of the applicable legal framework and to go deeper into critical approach to it.

Evaluation methods

The examination is written and in both languages. It is designed to comply with faculty guidelines on the assessment of courses taught wholly or partly in a language other than French.

Faculty or entity

> DRT