Medical jurisprudence, or forensic medicine in the broad sense (the specific sense of identifying causes of death is a matter of forensic pathology

Forensic pathology

Forensic pathology is a branch of pathology concerned with determining the cause of death by examination of a corpse. The autopsy is performed by the pathologist at the request of a coroner or medical examiner usually during the investigation of criminal law cases and civil law cases in some...

), now embraces all matters which may bring the physician

Physician

A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

 into contact with the law. It thus includes (1), questions of the legal and ethical duties

Medical ethics

Medical ethics is a system of moral principles that apply values and judgments to the practice of medicine. As a scholarly discipline, medical ethics encompasses its practical application in clinical settings as well as work on its history, philosophy, theology, and sociology.-History:Historically,...

 of physicians; (2), questions affecting the civil rights of individuals with respect to medicine

Medicine

Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....

; and (3), medicolegal assessment of injuries to the person. Under the second heading there are many aspects, including (but not limited to): (a), questions of competence

Competence (law)

In American law, competence concerns the mental capacity of an individual to participate in legal proceedings. Defendants that do not possess sufficient "competence" are usually excluded from criminal prosecution, while witnesses found not to possess requisite competence cannot testify...

 or sanity

Sanity

Sanity refers to the soundness, rationality and healthiness of the human mind, as opposed to insanity. A person is sane if they are rational...

 in civil or criminal prceedings; (b), questions of competence of minors

Minor (law)

In law, a minor is a person under a certain age — the age of majority — which legally demarcates childhood from adulthood; the age depends upon jurisdiction and application, but is typically 18...

 in matters affecting their own health; and (c), questions of lawful fitness or safety to drive a motor vehicle, pilot an aeroplane, use scuba gear, play certain sport, or to join certain occupations. Under the third heading, there are also many aspects, including (but not limited to): (a) assessment of illness or injuries that may be work-related (see workers' compensation

Workers' compensation

Workers' compensation is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her employer for the tort of negligence...

 or occupational safety and health

Occupational safety and health

Occupational safety and health is a cross-disciplinary area concerned with protecting the safety, health and welfare of people engaged in work or employment. The goal of all occupational safety and health programs is to foster a safe work environment...

) or otherwise compensable; (b) assessment of injuries of minors that may relate to neglect or abuse

Child abuse

Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...

; and (c), certification of death

Death certificate

The phrase death certificate can describe either a document issued by a medical practitioner certifying the deceased state of a person or popularly to a document issued by a person such as a registrar of vital statistics that declares the date, location and cause of a person's death as later...

 or else the assessment of possible causes of death

Coroner

A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...

 — this is the falsely narrow meaning of forensic medicine as commonly understood.

Though relatively few are aware of it, from birth to death almost every aspect of life in a modern western society

Western world

The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...

is touched by medical jurisprudence.