SOCIAL WORK FORENSIC REPORTS IN SOUTH AFRICAN CRIMINAL COURTS: INEVITABILITY IN THE QUEST FOR JUSTICE

Authors

  • Mariëtte Joubert NICRO, Bloemfontein
  • Carel van Wyk University of the Free State

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15270/50-4-387

Keywords:

social work, forensic report, South Africa, criminal, court, legal

Abstract

Social work forensic reports can play a vital role in sentencing. In this article the expectations of criminal courts of social work forensic reports were established in order to improve the contribution of the social work discipline in the search for justice. An important result indicates that courts would like to make use of social work forensic reports, among others. However, the poor writing style of some of these reports makes them unfit for use in the legal context. It is argued that social workers must be trained in critical thinking and the elements of clear writing to enable them to produce high-quality forensic reports.   

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Published

2014-10-31

How to Cite

Joubert, M., & van Wyk, C. (2014). SOCIAL WORK FORENSIC REPORTS IN SOUTH AFRICAN CRIMINAL COURTS: INEVITABILITY IN THE QUEST FOR JUSTICE. Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk, 50(4). https://doi.org/10.15270/50-4-387

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Articles