Dr Carson graduated in Medicine from Edinburgh University in 1991 and completed basic Psychiatry training at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital. Following six months as a Wellcome Research Fellow examining the cognitive effects of HIV infection in a Kenyan population, he was Lecturer and Honorary Senior Registrar in Psychiatry at University of Edinburgh.

During this time he developed his interest in neuropsychiatry and was trained by Professor Michael Sharpe, Professor David Owens and Professor Charles Warlow. He was subsequently appointed Consultant Neuropsychiatrist to Rehabilitation Medicine at the Astley Ainslie Hospital and to the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the Western General Hospital.

He was an original grant holder for the development of the Scottish Mental Health Research Network.

Abstract Functional neurologic disorder often occur in association with physical trauma or psychologically stressful events. This means they are commonly a complication of accidents and as recognition improves they are more commonly encountered ing the setting of personal injury. It is important to recognise that there is nothing new here, similar patients and presentations have been recognised in the Court over the past century.

In this talk I will describe my approach to assessment of such cases and how one might attempt to integrate current scientific understanding in a way that helps the Court decide what has happened and who was to blame.

We will cover diagnosis, exaggeration, onset, risk and triggers and treatment.