On Sunday, October 4, 2015, Citizens With Disabilities – Ontario (CWDO) is presenting its “Facing a Future with Assisted Suicide” webinar (link to flyer for webinar).

Dr. Eric Wasylenko, Director of the Dosseter Centre of Health Ethics, will moderate, with disability rights lawyer David Baker and health law expert Gilbert Sharpe forming the expert panel leading the discussion on the remaining questions that need to be addressed in the wake of the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Carter v Canada (Attorney General), 2015 SCC 5 (link to case).

The discussion will also centre on how these questions are to be addressed in legislation.

David Baker and Gilbert Sharpe have prepared draft legislation to amend the Criminal Code to be consistent with Carter, which can be found at this link (link to draft legislation).

Professor Jocelyn Downie has also drafted legislation to amend the Criminal Code to be consistent with Carter, which can be found at this link (link to draft legislation).

The federal government’s External Panel on Options for a Legislative Response to Carter will be observing the webinar, and the provincial / territorial panel has been invited to participate.

The webinar is free of charge, but the CWDO asks that attendees register beforehand at this link (link to registration).

For instructions to join the online webinar, follow this link (link to instructions).

For more information on safeguards in assisted suicide legislation, please read this excerpt from Tom Shakespeare’s Disability Rights and Wrongs (link to excerpt), and for data on the number of assisted suicide and euthanasia deaths in the Benelux countries, please review the linked tables (link to tables).