The Right of a Minor in Israel to Participate in the Decision-Making Process Concerning His or Her Medical Treatment

The Article raises questions concerning the validity of the age of eighteen years as the youngest age allowing independent consent of a minor in Israel to his or her medical treatment. One of the primary suggestions in the Article is that there is a need to apply the informed consent doctrine to the medical treatment of Israeli and other minors who possess the appropriate capacities deemed necessary for comprehending the full implication of their consent. The authors believe that the doctrine of “developing capacities,” as formulated in Article 12 of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Israel is a signatory and which Israel ratified in 1991, should be implemented as the major doctrine on the right of a minor to participate in the decision-making process concerning his/her medical treatment.