Deciding on Death: Rodriguez, Carter, and Medically Assisted Dying in Canada

Examines the legality of assisted suicide in Canada.

Should people have the right to medical assistance in dying? If so, under what conditions? Deciding on Death delves into the legal and political aspects of these controversial questions.

In the early 1990s, Sue Rodriguez unsuccessfully challenged the criminalization of assisted dying. The Supreme Court of Canada subsequently reversed its position in a 2015 case brought by the family of Kay Carter, who had traveled abroad for access to an assisted death. Kent McNeil and Wayne Sumner not only analyze the landmark Rodriguez and Carter decisions but also contextualize them within legal and political history and carry the story forward to the present day.

The legalization of medically assisted dying has finally given many Canadians with incurable medical conditions that cause them intolerable suffering the ability to choose the manner and timing of their death. Over fifteen thousand people per year now pursue this option. This timely book explains how we got here and the decisions that still lie ahead.