Psychology medico legal report template

Whilst we do not recommend using a standard template for the preparation of a psychology medico legal report, we can make some recommendations as to what they should contain.  This information is based on the fact that we provide in excess of 500 psychology medico legal reports to a wide range of clients per annum.  The points below highlight some of the main points that should be covered in a medico legal report and also some tips on formatting:

Psychology medico legal report formatting

- All pages within the medico legal report should have a header containing your name & professional title as well as the details of the claimant/defendant the report is concerning and the instructing party(ies)

- Each page of the medico legal report should also be numbered in the footer e.g. Page 1 of 10

- There should be a contents page at the beginning of the medico legal report covering the different sections within the report and appendicies.  This page should also list page and/or paragraph numbers for the relevant sections.

- Ideally each paragraph and page should be numbered to enable specific sections of the medico legal report to be easily referred to and located.

- Each new section of the report should have a clear heading e.g. Summary of background to the case, My Opinion etc.

- The medico legal report should be on single sided A4 paper in font size 12 or larger, with double spacing to allow for note taking.

Psychology Medico legal report structure

- The structure of the report needs to be clear, logical and appropriate to the reader(s).  Please keep in mind that this could include other professionals as well as witnesses, jurors etc.

- A psychology medico legal report should start with a cover page that includes details of the action/case, any solicitor or court reference numbers, the version of the report e.g. draft 1 or Final, the date of the report, details of the claimant/defendant & instructing party(ies) and finally, your name, title, contact details and any reference.

- The medico legal report should start with a brief description of the subject matter.

- The report should then follow in chronological order.

- This principle should also apply to the way the content of the medico legal report  is presented i.e. background, analysis, conclusion & recommendations.  This will help the reader(s) to understand the evidence and how the Psychology Expert Witness came to their conclusions.

- To ensure the report is as clear as possible it is best to try and stick to one topic per paragraph, this will help avoid jumping from one point to another without concluding the topic and it will also help the reader(s) digest the contents of the report.

- As with any medico legal report, and to comply with the Civil & Family Procedure rules, the source of any content must be clearly identified.  This should include content based on knowledge as well as from information or belief.  The source of any information or belief should be given and where appropriate listed in the appendicies.

NB – Every psychology medico legal report must comply with the relevant procedure rules, whether it be for the Civil, Criminal or Family Courts.  There are also specific declarations that must be included such as a “Statement of Compliance”, “Statement of Truth” etc.  CLICK HERE to refer to the Ministry of Justice Procedure rules.