Charlie's Law in UK Parliament Would Require Mediation of Treatment Conflicts

For decades, scores of courts have observed that "the truly ideal solution" for medical treatment disputes is for parties to "resolve their differences privately, on their own, with the aid of medical and clerical advice, and not have to resort to expensive and arduous legal proceedings."

In an aim to achieve this type of private solution, Charlie's Law would mandate mediation before an NHS Trust may take a clinician-parent treatment conflict (like Alfie Evans and Charlie Gard) to the High Court. The bill received a second reading in the House of Lords this week.

If enacted, the law will prohibit a health service body from making an application to the High Court unless it has first "followed a process of mediation with an independent mediator in an attempt to resolve any differences between the health service body and any person who has parental responsibility for the child."