The rationales for giving juveniles the right to have their competency to stand trial determined include the constitutional requirement, protection from stress or duress, the provision of needed treatment, and the need for an adequate defense. Laws giving juveniles the right to be evaluated for competency to stand trial indicates that legislators view incompetency to stand trial as synonymous with mental illness, as justification for general treatment of the juvenile, and as requiring inpatient treatment in all cases. Similar presumptions about incompetency in adult criminal courts are widely recognized as misinterpretations and misuses of the competency doctrine. The doctrine should only be applied to ensure that defendants understand the nature of the delinquency proceedings and can adequately assist their attorneys in a defense. Relieving mentally ill juveniles from the stress of the trial and ensuring that they receive needed treatment could be achieved through other legal remedies. 58 references.