BC court rules against doctor-prescribed death
Thursday, Oct 10, 2013
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Brett Harvey regarding a decision Thursday by the British Columbia Court of Appeal in Carter v. Attorney General of Canada to reverse a lower court decision and fully uphold Canada’s laws against doctor-prescribed death:
“Suffering patients need understanding and sound medical treatment, not encouragement to kill themselves. We agree with the court that the existing Canadian laws against doctor-prescribed death protect all Canadians, including the most vulnerable, such as those who are ill, disabled, or elderly. The Canadian Supreme Court has upheld these laws in the past, and they are widely supported in Parliament. Alliance Defending Freedom has been pleased to provide funding to help protect these provisions.”
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom allied attorney Gerald Chipeur, Q.C., of the Canadian firm Miller Thompson LLP, which represented clients supporting British Columbia’s laws:
“I welcome the decision of the Court of Appeal to protect vulnerable Canadians from abuse. The court properly recognized that legislation has not adequately protected the right to life in democracies that have allowed euthanasia. The overwhelming majority of Canadian physicians want to protect and preserve the life of each one of their patients and believe that intentionally killing patients clearly violates their moral and ethical responsibilities.”
Select Excerpts from the Decision:
p. 102: We see this as the key holding in the case − that s. 241(b) of the Code was rationally connected to its objective and that the “societal concern with preserving life and protecting the vulnerable [against abuse] rendered the blanket prohibition preferable to a law that might not adequately prevent abuse.”
p. 104: …the Code was found to have “‘a clearly pressing and substantial legislative’ objective grounded in the respect for and the desire to protect human life”; and to be rationally connected to its purpose.
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization that advocates for the right of people to freely live out their faith.
“Suffering patients need understanding and sound medical treatment, not encouragement to kill themselves. We agree with the court that the existing Canadian laws against doctor-prescribed death protect all Canadians, including the most vulnerable, such as those who are ill, disabled, or elderly. The Canadian Supreme Court has upheld these laws in the past, and they are widely supported in Parliament. Alliance Defending Freedom has been pleased to provide funding to help protect these provisions.”
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom allied attorney Gerald Chipeur, Q.C., of the Canadian firm Miller Thompson LLP, which represented clients supporting British Columbia’s laws:
“I welcome the decision of the Court of Appeal to protect vulnerable Canadians from abuse. The court properly recognized that legislation has not adequately protected the right to life in democracies that have allowed euthanasia. The overwhelming majority of Canadian physicians want to protect and preserve the life of each one of their patients and believe that intentionally killing patients clearly violates their moral and ethical responsibilities.”
Select Excerpts from the Decision:
p. 102: We see this as the key holding in the case − that s. 241(b) of the Code was rationally connected to its objective and that the “societal concern with preserving life and protecting the vulnerable [against abuse] rendered the blanket prohibition preferable to a law that might not adequately prevent abuse.”
p. 104: …the Code was found to have “‘a clearly pressing and substantial legislative’ objective grounded in the respect for and the desire to protect human life”; and to be rationally connected to its purpose.
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization that advocates for the right of people to freely live out their faith.
# # # | Ref. 35340