Also known as: legally effective consents · valid consent · effective consent
Written by attorneys — see sources below.
A form of consent that is freely and voluntarily given by a person who possesses legal capacity to consent. Coercion, threats, deception, or incapacity due to mental illness, substantial cognitive impairment, or youth renders consent invalid.
Layla Lane attended a party where she consumed several drinks and repeatedly told Lance Lee she felt dizzy. Lance led Layla into a bedroom and initiated intercourse. Layla later reported the encounter, stating she could not clearly resist or consent. Because Layla lacked capacity due to intoxication, her apparent agreement supplied no legally effective consent, supporting a rape charge under the common law definition.
Lila Lin accepted an invitation from Lucia Lopez to tour a site. Lucia directed Lila into a vehicle whose doors locked, then drove across a state line and confined Lila in a remote cabin for three days under armed guard. Threats prevented Lila from leaving. The initial invitation supplied no ongoing consent once coercion began, so the confinement occurred without legally effective consent and constituted false imprisonment.
Liam Larson took an unmarried girl from her father's custody. The girl was in fact under sixteen, though Liam believed on reasonable grounds she was older. Because the girl lacked legal capacity due to youth, any apparent agreement supplied no legally effective consent, and the taking remained unlawful.
Henry Prince stood trial at the Surrey assizes before Denman, J. He faced a charge under section 55 of the Offences against the Person Act, 1861, for unlawfully taking Annie Phillips, an unmarried girl under sixteen years of age, out of the possession and against the will of her father. The jury returned a verdict of guilty. Judgment was respited to allow the Court for Crown Cases Reserved to consider a legal question arising from the case. The evidence established that Annie Phillips was fourteen years old. She had told Prince she was eighteen, and she appeared older than her actual age. Prince maintained that he had acted on a bona fide and reasonable belief that Phillips was eighteen years old. Denman, J., reserved the case for the opinion of the Court on whether the defendant's belief constituted a defence to the charge.
View caseLucy Liu, a minor, sought confidential medical services without parental involvement. State law required parental consent for such services. Because Lucy lacked legal capacity due to youth, any agreement she gave could not constitute legally effective consent, triggering constitutional review of the restriction.
In 1972, New York Education Law section 6811(8) prohibited the sale or distribution of any contraceptive to a minor under sixteen. It limited distribution to persons sixteen and older to licensed pharmacists. It also banned the advertisement or display of contraceptives. Population Planning Associates, Inc., a North Carolina corporation engaged in mail-order sales of nonprescription contraceptives, regularly advertised its products in New York periodicals. It filled orders from New York residents without age restrictions. On December 1, 1971, New York officials notified PPA that one of its advertisements violated the statute and requested future compliance. A February 23, 1973 letter threatened referral to the Attorney General for legal action if PPA failed to comply with the provisions prohibiting sales to minors and sales by nonpharmacists. On September 4, 1974, state inspectors served PPA with a report recording its advertising of male contraceptives and advising it to cease sales in violation of state law. PPA, along with Population Services International, Reverend James B. Hagen, three physicians, and an adult New York resident, filed suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. A three-judge District Court for the Southern District of New York declared § 6811 (8) unconstitutional in its entirety under the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the Federal Constitution insofar as it applies to nonprescription contraceptives, and enjoined its enforcement as so applied. The plaintiffs sought declaratory and injunctive relief against enforcement of the statute. Appellants included New York Governor Hugh Carey and other state officials responsible for enforcing the Education Law. After proceedings, a three-judge district court in 1975 declared section 6811(8) unconstitutional in its entirety under the First and Fourteenth Amendments insofar as it applied to nonprescription contraceptives and enjoined its enforcement. The district court opinion is reported at 398 F. Supp. 321 (1975). The Supreme Court noted probable jurisdiction in 1976.
View caseIntoxication prevents legally effective consent when it renders the victim incapable of appraising or controlling conduct. Facts showing repeated statements of dizziness, disorientation, and a high blood-alcohol level support a finding of incapacity. A mere nod or ability to walk does not overcome that incapacity if the victim cannot give free and voluntary agreement.
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Prior consent becomes invalid once coercion or threats begin. Confinement that continues under duress after an initial invitation exceeds any agreed scope. Ongoing threats and physical barriers overcome any earlier acquiescence, rendering the confinement without legally effective consent.
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Youth renders consent invalid when the person lacks legal capacity due to age. A defendant who takes a minor from parental custody must take the consequences of the victim's actual age. Apparent agreement supplies no defense when the victim is under the statutory age threshold.
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Implied permission during shopping is limited to examining merchandise inside the store. Concealing an item and walking past registers without payment exceeds that permission. No actual consent from authorized personnel exists, so the taking remains without legally effective consent.
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…in part). : Planned Parenthood , however, "does not suggest that every minor, regardless of age or maturity, may give effective consent for termination of her pregnancy. See Bellotti v. Baird , 428 U. S. 132 (1976). The fault of [the particular statute considered in Planned Parenthood ] is that it imposes a…