Hi, my name is Emma Montgomery.
I am a member of the Mental Health Tribunal.
You are probably watching this because you have been invited to a Tribunal hearing. I will explain what to expect.
A hearing is a formal meeting involving three members of the Mental Health Tribunal. We will decide whether you need to have compulsory treatment.
The Tribunal will consist of a:
- legal member
- a psychiatrist or medical member and
- a community member.
The Tribunal is independent of your health service.
Tribunal hearings are usually conducted online using Microsoft Teams.
You can participate in your Tribunal hearing
- from the mental health service or
- from home via video conference on a computer or iPad, or
- by telephone.
Talk to your treating team about how you would like to participate.
You can bring a family member or a friend to support you. You can also be represented by a lawyer.
Members of the treating team will attend the hearing.
At the start of the hearing we will explain the decision we need to make. We need to decide whether to make an order for mental health treatment on a compulsory basis.
We need to apply the criteria in the Mental Health and Wellbeing Act. Information about the criteria and how to prepare for your hearing is available on the Tribunal's website.
During the hearing the tribunal members will ask questions and listen to what you have to say. We will also ask the treating team questions. If you bring a support person we may ask them questions to.
When we have finished asking questions we will take a short break. We will consider what you have had to say and all the information provided and we will decide whether or not to make an order for compulsory mental health treatment.
At the end of the hearing we will tell you our decision.
We would really like you to participate in your hearing. Come along and tell us what you want to say.