title: Legal Standards for Brain Death and Undue Influence in Euthanasia Laws.
abstract: A major appellate court decision from the United States seriously questions the legal sufficiency of prevailing medical criteria for the determination of death by neurological criteria. There may be a mismatch between legal and medical standards for brain death, requiring the amendment of either or both. In South Australia, a Bill seeks to establish a legal right for a defined category of persons suffering unbearably to request voluntary euthanasia. However, an essential criterion of a voluntary decision is that it is not tainted by undue influence, and this Bill falls short of providing adequate guidance to assess for undue influence.
authors.affiliation: Mitchell Hamline School of Law, 875 Summit Ave, Saint Paul, Minnesota, 55105, USA. thaddeus.pope@mitchellhamline.edu.
authors.forename: Thaddeus Mason
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Pope
authors.affiliation: Law School, University of Adelaide, North Terrace, Adelaide, 5005, Australia. michaela.okninski@adelaide.edu.au.
authors.forename: Michaela E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Okninski
mesh_terms: D016223:Advance Directives / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D001926:Brain Death / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D033101:Euthanasia, Active, Voluntary / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D035521:Supreme Court Decisions; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D014481:United States
keywords: American Academy of Neurology; Brain death; Determination of death by neurological criteria; End-of-life; Life-sustaining treatment; Undue influence; Uniform Determination of Death Act; Voluntariness; Voluntary euthanasia