This book has been written to help psychologists to present the results of their assessments as evidence in court. The report is the most important way in which he or she can communicate the outcomes of a psychological assessment. It is the report that is submitted as evidence, and a poor quality report can have negative implications not only for the individual psychologist but for the profession as a whole. Although the chapters that follow identify a range of issues that are relevant to report writing across a number of different countries, it is immediately apparent that high quality reports have many things in common. A good report will, for example, clearly examine psychological issues that are of direct relevance to the legal decision-making, taking account of the germane local legislation. Indeed, it is legislation that provides definition and direction for the report. The psychologist brings together in a good report general factual and clinical material and considers its relevance to the legal issues under consideration, with the aim of providing a coherent and logical opinion for the court.Good reports follow a logical structure which clearly documents the reasons for the referral, the nature of the assessment, and the opinion of the expert.

The chapters that follow describe an approach that provides such a structure, as well as guidance on how to use a range of psychological tools/methods that can inform an opinion. While psychological reports can be prepared to address a wide range of legal questions that arise in different courts and tribunals, our focus here is solely on those reports that are prepared for the criminal court.What makes forensic reports different from general clinical reports has mostly to do with their content and style. The content is often dissimilar from that contained in general psychological reports because of the over-riding need to address forensic questions. The style differs because forensic reports are written to meet the demands of legal forums, non-expert readers and decision-makers. Unlike reports that seek to communicate with like-minded professionals, the court report is written for the lay person and should, therefore, be written in a manner that is readily understandable and free from jargon. The use of legal terminology, with moderation, will however increase the credibility of the report. A series of case examples are used in this book to illustrate these differences.

Finally, this book considers how to effectively give oral evidence in court based on the report and how the psychologist might prepare him or herself to do this professionally.