Further to the news that the Royal College of Physicians is to poll its members on assisted dying, the issue is also likely to come before the European Court of Human Rights.
In Mortier c Belgium (Requête no 78017/17) ECHR [French only], the applicant, Tom Mortier, is pursuing the case of the euthanasia of his mother, who was suffering from chronic depression, which was carried out by Professor Distelmans, an oncologist, without the knowledge of Mr Mortier and his sister. The Federal Commission of Control and Evaluation charged with verifying compliance with the procedure and the conditions laid down by the Law of 28 May 2002 on Euthanasia did not discover any infringement with the law. The Commission’s decision is not public. Continue reading