The judge may order a psychiatric examination if: - A suspicion arises that the defendant lacked mental capacity due to their psychosocial or intellectual disability when the criminal offence was committed, or that their mental capacity was diminished (criminal responsibility); or - A serious doubt exists that they are incapable of participating in criminal proceedings due to their mental condition (fitness to stand trial). The motion to order a psychiatric examination can also be made by the defence. The examination is carried out by a psychiatric expert, during which the expert can also perform an interview with the accused person. However, concerns were raised that sometimes these interviews are too short to provide a quality assessment: “ I also think that there is a problem here and that it is difficult to perform an assessment based on one short conversation. I find it necessary that clinical psychologists are also included in the assessment so that they can provide insight in one part of the person’s personality, which is then supplemented by the psychiatrist […] I often find it lacking in depth, (done) in a hurry.”70 If the psychiatric expert finds that the accused person is suffering from a psychosocial or intellectual disability or some other lasting and severe mental condition, they should determine its nature, type, degree and duration, and give their opinion as to how such mental condition affected the accountability of the accused person at the time of committing the criminal offence (the question of mental capacity that might affect the defendant’s guilt in accordance with the Criminal Code) and how it still affects their perception and behaviour, or whether their mental condition is such as to render the accused person incapable of participating in criminal proceedings, and the anticipated period of their procedural incapacity.71 The right to a second expert opinion The Court will grant a request for the introduction of another expert where a party has argued on reasonable grounds that it doubts the competence and correctness of the expert's opinion. However, it will first seek to resolve the deficiencies and contradictions of the opinion by re-examining the expert. But if the doubts as to the correctness of the expert's opinion or the deficiencies cannot be resolved in this way, the court will request 70 71 Interview with a prosecutor. Article 265(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act (Zakon o kazenskem postopku), 29 September 1994. 28