
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 42USC10807]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
    CHAPTER 114--PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY FOR MENTALLY ILL INDIVIDUALS
 
              SUBCHAPTER I--PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYSTEMS
 
                    Part A--Establishment of Systems
 
Sec. 10807. Legal actions

    (a) Prior to instituting any legal action in a Federal or State 
court on behalf of a \1\ individual with mental illness, an eligible 
system, or a State agency or nonprofit organization which entered into a 
contract with an eligible system under section 10804(a) of this title, 
shall exhaust in a timely manner all administrative remedies where 
appropriate. If, in pursuing administrative remedies, the system, 
agency, or organization determines that any matter with respect to such 
individual will not be resolved within a reasonable time, the system, 
agency, or organization may pursue alternative remedies, including the 
initiation of a legal action.
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    \1\ So in original. Probably should be ``an''.
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    (b) Subsection (a) of this section does not apply to any legal 
action instituted to prevent or eliminate imminent serious harm to a \1\ 
individual with mental illness.

(Pub. L. 99-319, title I, Sec. 107, May 23, 1986, 100 Stat. 482; Pub. L. 
102-173, Sec. 10(1), Nov. 27, 1991, 105 Stat. 1219.)


                               Amendments

    1991--Pub. L. 102-173 substituted ``individual with mental illness'' 
for ``mentally ill individual'' in subsecs. (a) and (b).
