Proposing a Hearty Toast to Professor Christian Diesen: Pouring an Abundance of TJ Wine into a TJ-Friendly Swedish Bottle

Abstract

This essay forms a chapter in a volume honoring University of Stockholm law professor Christian Diesen on the occasion of his retirement from full-time law teaching. Diesen is a leading voice in therapeutic jurisprudence (TJ), teaches a TJ course at the university, and published a full-length TJ treatise in Swedish.

The present essay looks at the mechanism in Sweden for conditionally releasing mentally ill criminal offenders. Following a metaphor and methodology of "wine" and "bottles", where the "bottles" are the applicable provisions of local law and where the "wine" is the judicial behavior likely to promote patient compliance with the imposed requirements of conditional release, the essay suggests several steps that can be taken by Swedish administrative judges to improve the administration of the law. This effort is part of an international and interdisciplinary project to "mainstream" therapeutic jurisprudence, especially in the area of criminal law and procedure.

Keywords: therapeutic jurisprudence, TJ, mental health law, mentally ill offenders, conditional release, mainstreaming therapeutic jurisprudence, Christian Diesen, festschrift