Community Treatment Orders

Abstract

Community Treatment Orders (CTOs), made in Canada under the authority of provincial mental health legislation, are the major legal product of the transition in psychiatric services from hospital- to community-based care. This article focuses on the principle features of provincial CTO regimes in Canada, including the criteria for their use and the powers they provide over patients’ treatment in the community. The author assesses the empirical studies that have been conducted in Canada to try to evaluate the efficacy of CTOs, and assesses the relationship between CTOs and the Canadian Charter of Rights, concluding that Canadian CTO legislation has strengths, but also certain weaknesses.