The word consent defines the action of approval or "go-ahead" for the execution of something. For example, "I need my father's consent to be able to have a boyfriend." Which means that by consenting to something, you are granting permission to perform an action. As you can see, it is a term highly applied in everyday life and in all contexts.
In the field of law, the term consent has a legal meaning, which refers to the manifest will between two or more people, to consent to rights and obligations. Consent is handled within civil law, mainly in the law of contracts and obligations; where it fulfills a vital role for the autonomy of the will.
Consent within civil law is a primary requirement when it comes to giving contracts legality. For example when accepting an inheritance or when a marriage is going to take place.
In criminal law, consent is used as a legal weapon when executing the defense against criminal or civil liability arising from a punishable act. In this case, the defendant can use consent as a mitigating factor, which helps them avoid responsibility for the acts committed, since they were done with the consent of the accusing party.
For a consent to be legally valid, it must meet certain conditions: the individual must have the capacity to act, which means that neither minors nor the mentally insane can give consents. Consent must not be obtained through threat or intimidation.
In the medical field, this term is also used, being this very important, especially when a patient must undergo a risky treatment or a surgical intervention. Consent in this case is a document that the patient or their family members must sign, making it clear that they agree with what is to be done and that they understand the risks that the patient runs, but still decide to assume. Once the consent is signed, the doctor cannot be affected if something goes wrong, because both the patient and their relatives gave their permission to carry out the action.
