Neuroethics and treatment without consent

Carrara's emphasis on the importance of consciousness and its layered dysfunctions as evidence of competence or impairment appears more robust than a narrow approach based only on functional mental capacity. Capacity-whether general or functional, remains amenable to rules of evidence and legal judgment at the expense of increasingly excessive simplification. Carrara's emphasis on the inherent dignity of the person appears most in keeping with modern human rights principles.