MEDICO LEGAL
CASE ( MLC )
By Priya Baruah
Assistant Professor , NGI
WHAT IS MEDICO LEGAL
CASE?
•A medical case with legal
implications for the attending doctor
/ hospital where the attending
doctor, after taking history and
examining the patient, thinks that
some investigation by law
enforcement agencies is essential.
•In any of the medico-legal cases, it is the legal
duty of the treating doctor to report it to the
nearest police station immediately after
completing primary life saving medical care.
• The idea is to initiate the legal proceeding at
the earliest so that maximum evidence can be
collected by the police officer.
•Quick action by the police also helps to avoid
any destruction of evidence.
LIST OF MEDICO-LEGAL
CASE
•All cases of burns injuries
•All road traffic accidents (RTA).
•All vehicular, factory or other unnatural
accident cases.
•Cases of suspected or evident sexual assault.
•Cases of suspected or evident criminal
abortion.
•Bullet injury / stabbing .
•Child abuse , Domestic violence
LIST OF MEDICO-LEGAL
CASE
•Fallfrom height .
•Cases of unconsciousness where its cause is not
natural or not clear.
•All cases of suspected or evident poisoning or
intoxication.
•Cases brought dead.
•Cases of suspected self-infliction of injuries or
attempted suicide.
•“Every doctor is bound to provide
medical aid to the victims
irrespective of the cause of injury;
he cannot take any excuse of
allowing law to take its course”.
-The Supreme Court of
India
•India witnessed 1,68,491 deaths in 2022 ( as per
Press Information Bureau , Govt. of India ) due to
road traffic accidents.
•31% women suffer from domestic violence leading
to grave injuries in India. ( acc. to recent studies )
• it is important that hospitals and the law work
hand in hand to help the injured.
•The law states that concerns like legal formalities,
monetary considerations or even the
infrastructural restraints of the institution should
not prohibit the institution or hospital from
providing basic and emergency medical
treatment.
DOCTOR’S DUTY
• Every doctor under law bound by a legal duty to serve
its patient and can not refuse treatment.
• Medico legal case (MLC) examination and reporting is
the legal responsibility of all doctors working in a
hospital.
• Emergency Medical Officer (EMO) at Emergency
should decide whether the case is to be registered as
MLC or not.
PROCEDURE FOR
MEDICO LEGAL CASE
1. TREATMENT (All legal formalities to be suspended till the
patient is stabilized )
2. IDENTIFICATION (Whether the said case falls under
Medico Legal Case or not)
3. INTIMATION TO POLICE (if it does fall in this category,
then he must register the case as an MLC and intimate /
inform the same to the nearest police station
4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RECEIPT: From the police &
should be preserved for future reference.
REPORTING OF MEDICO
LEGAL CASE
•Reports must be prepared in duplicate on
proper documents giving all necessary details
•Avoid abbreviations, over writings. Correction
if any, should be initialed with date and time.
•Reports must be submitted to the nearest
police station promptly.
•Medico-legal documents should be stored
under safe custody for lifetime. ( in Medical
Records Department )
•Age, sex, father’s name, complete
address, date and time of reporting,
time of incident, brought by whom
should be noted.
•Identification marks and finger
impressions should be noted.
DOCUMENTATIONS TO BE
FILLED
•MLC Patient History sheet ( by the
treating doctor )
•Police Intimation Book ( by the treating
doctor )
•MLC Register
•If Brought dead , then Additionally
Brought Dead register to be filled
DYING DECLARATION
• If a MLC patient is dying , the Doctor should
immediately ask the police officer on duty in writing to
call a magistrate. If there is no time to call a
magistrate, the dying declaration should be recorded
by the doctor himself in the presence of another doctor
or a Senior Administrative Officer.
• Forms of Dying Declaration : It may be in the following
forms:- Written form ,Verbal form ,Gestures and Signs
form.
DYING
DECLARATION
CASES
MLC Police Intimation Book
