Kavanagh QC: 4x4

Bearing Witness

Kavanagh represents a Jehovah’s Witness mother when a hospital wants her 13-year-old son to have a blood transfusion that will save his life. When the mother refuses, Luke is made a ward of court and the hospital seeks judicial permission to go ahead with the transfusion. The hospital wins its action, and Luke is given a transfusion. Escaping from hospital with the help of his mother, Luke dies shortly afterward. When his father, prompted by a national newspaper, brings an action for manslaughter against his estranged wife, Kavanagh is called as a reluctant witness.