Assisted Dying in Europe: A comparative law and governance analysis of four national and two supranational systems

Abstract

This thesis argues that public-private governance, as opposed to traditional public governance, can better serve the authoritative issuance and social efficacy demands of the law on assisted dying. Approaching the law on assisted dying - that is the law on voluntary active euthanasia and assisted suicide - from this perspective presupposes three things. First, it requires that we construct an objective and consistent normative ethical framework to determine the ideal dimension of the law. Second, it challenges us to think beyond the contractarian reflex that equates a suitable legal policy with democratic self-determination by a demos. And third, it demands that we allocate authority to reform, implement, and evaluate the law on assisted dying between public and private actors, within or beyond the state-level, in accordance with their respective capacities.