Legal Definitions - implied consent

Implied consent is a type of agreement that is not directly and clearly given with explicit words, but rather inferred from a person's actions or circumstances. It can be withdrawn at any time and the person giving consent must have the capacity to make a valid decision.

• If a person goes to a doctor's office and sits in the examination room, they are giving implied consent for the doctor to examine them.
• When a person participates in a sport, they are giving implied consent to the physical contact that is customary in that sport.
• By driving a car in a state with an "implied consent" law, a person is giving implied consent to take a chemical test to measure their blood alcohol content if they are suspected of driving under the influence.

These examples illustrate how implied consent can be given through a person's actions or circumstances, rather than through explicit words. In each case, the person is considered to have given consent by their behavior or by the situation they are in.