Compulsory alcoholism treatment in New South Wales

The compulsory treatment of people with substance use disorders continues to attract interest in many countries, particularly in the medico-legal, policy and research communities. Beyond the current fashion for Drugs Courts within the criminal justice system, several jurisdictions have for many years had involuntary commitment regimes operating within the civil sphere. This paper offers a case-study of one such regime that operates in New South Wales, Australia. After backgrounding the introduction of the Inebriates Act in the early 1900s, and describing the major features of the legislation, the paper outlines how the Act is currently being used, and what little is known about treatment outcomes under this regime. The paper concludes by considering a number of criticisms that have been levelled against the Inebriates Act, and briefly assessing its prospects for the future.