This classic textbook has provided students of medical law and ethics with a framework for exploring this fascinating subject for over 25 years. Providing coverage of all of the topics found on medical law courses, it gives an overview of the inter-relationship between ethical medical practice and the law. The authors, both hugely experienced and influential in the field, offer their own opinions on current debates and controversies, and thereby encourage readers to formulate their own views and arguments. As a still-developing discipline, medical law is significantly shaped by the courts, and as such this book provides extensive coverage of recent judicial decisions as well as statutory developments. The last edition included a new chapter on the European dimension to health care, and this edition continues to take a comparative approach, with particular importance attached to the shift in influence from transatlantic jurisdictions to those of the EU.This book has continually evolved to reflect changes in the law and shifting ethical opinions - this eighth edition continues to fulfil this remit and is essential reading for any serious medical law student or practitioner, as well as being of interest to all those involved in the delivery and control of modern healthcare.