Rivers v. Katz

In Rivers v. Katz (67 N.Y.2d 485 [1986]), the Court held: "We likewise reject any argument that involuntarily committed patients lose their liberty interest in avoiding the unwanted administration of antipsychotic medication . . . We hold, therefore, that in situations where the State's police power is not implicated, and the patient refuses to consent to the administration of antipsychotic drugs, there must be a judicial determination of whether the patient has the capacity to make a reasoned decision with respect to proposed treatment before the drugs may be administered pursuant to the State's parens patriae power. The determination should be made at a hearing following exhaustion of the administrative review procedures provided for in 14 NYCRR 27.8. The hearing should be de novo, and the patient should be afforded representation by counsel (Judiciary Law 35 [1] [a]). The State would bear the burden of demonstrating by clear and convincing evidence the patient's incapacity to make a treatment decision."