mental competency
Capacity for decisions
Mental competency is the legal and psychological standard for determining whether a person can make decisions for themselves.
Courts assess mental competency when someone's capacity to understand consequences is in question—standing trial, signing contracts, managing finances, or consenting to medical treatment.
The judge ordered an evaluation of the defendant's mental competency.
A finding of incompetency may result in guardianship or institutional care.
- capacityMaximum amount containable
- memoryMind's retention capacity
- cognitive abilityMental processing capacity
- self-controlAbility to restrain impulses
- decision-making skillsAbility to choose well
attention · insanity defense · fiduciary duty · emotional intelligence · guardianship · power of attorney · informed consent · legal autonomy · critical thinking · decision making · reasoning · criminal responsibility · stress management · ethical reasoning · abstraction · problem-solving · resilience · impulse control
mental competencymental incapacity
Inability to reason adequately
cognitive impairment · mental deficiency · cognitive dysfunction · diminished capacity · mental impairment
mental competencylack of capacity
Absence of ability
incompetency · non compos mentis · wardship · incapacity · incapacitation
mental competencyinsanity
Severe mental illness
mental illness · derangement · psychosis · mental disorder · lunacy
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