W100

eTMA 03 Introduction. The essay I am about to write is about the concept of legal personality. I have been asked to evaluate the importance of it. To enable me to do this I’m going to read through Block 2 Legal personality, Rules, Rights and Justice: an introduction to law. I will complete all the activities in there so I get a better understanding of the subject. I am going to talk about how Legal personality affects different people, in different circumstances. Main Body Legal personality can be of importance to different people in different situations. When life begins and a human adopts Legal personality is seen to happen at different points in time by different points in time by different people. Some say that an unborn child has Legal personality if they would have lived a normal fulfilling life once born. If a unborn baby was to be harmed whilst inside its mother and it was done intentionally then should the culprit be convicted of the crime' If the unborn child had Legal personality then the answer would be yes. However some say that an unborn child should not be given Legal personality as it is not born yet then it is not seen as being a human being. Not everyone has the same amount of human Legal personality though. For instance, children do not have the same Legal personality as their parents or another adult. Children do not always know what is in their best interests so giving them too much Legal personality would not be appropriate. It is left to the parents to make legal decisions on behalf of the child, because being a parent you are expected to make the right decisions that are in the best interests of the child. However, sometimes this decision has to be taken away from the parents and put in the hands of a judge and the courts. For example if a child has a medical condition and needs tests or treatment and the parents refuse this for whatever reason. If the medical team, doctors, surgeon, etc feel that it is in the best interests of the child to undergo the treatment, tests etc then they can apply to the courts for the right to go against the parents’ wishes. Another example of someone not have Legal personality is the mentally ill. Most mentally ill people do not have the capacity to know right from wrong, or what is in their best interests. They would not know how to deal with medical, financial, etc decisions in the correct way. It is left to the parents/carer to make the decisions and sometimes even the courts. People who declare their self bankrupt also lose a certain amount of Legal personality. There are many different views and opinions about animals having legal personality. If Legal personality were to be given to animals then it would be argued that it would be a good thing because people would have to see them as “People” that have rights. Humans would have to appreciate their animals, and not abuse them. It would give animals more protection than is currently available for them. The argument against giving Legal personality to animals has many opinions. Animals are already protected by certain organisations dedicated to animal welfare, so would giving animal’s Legal personality protect them anymore than they already are' The owners of the animal are responsible for the care and well being of the animals in their care. Conclusion As you can see there are many arguments for and against Legal personality. In some aspects Legal personality is an important right we have. At times when this right is left to the courts to decide it may seem unfair because it goes against something we believe in, even if it is the right choice and in the best interest of our health, well being etc. Bibliography 2008 The Open University. Rules, Rights and Justice: An Introduction to law. P57-96. The Open University Block 2 Legal Personality Rules, Rights and Justice: An introduction to law. Word Count: 678