ABSTRACT
Non-therapeutic male circumcision is a medical procedure that is commonly performed on children throughout the world, usually for religious and cultural reasons. This chapter explores English law’s differential response to genital cutting and the intersection between law and religious practice as it pertains to ritual male circumcision. Deliberations are confined to English law within the context of the European Convention on Human Rights and its jurisprudence. The British Medical Association has published their guidelines for doctors on circumcision under English law. The chapter focuses on the issue of conflict between dissenting parents and their wish to have or not to have their child circumcised. Non-therapeutic male circumcision is a medical procedure that is commonly performed on children throughout the world, usually for religious and cultural reasons. The legal capacity to consent on behalf of the child to medical treatment, such as male circumcision, is included.
