Assisted dying and forfeiture – Accompanying a loved one to an assisted dying clinic abroad. Morris v Morris [2024] EWHC 2554 Ch
Introduction
Assisted dying has been in the news recently with the highly publicised successful passing of the second reading of the Terminally ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on 29 November 2024. This bill is now at committee stage and will likely undergo numerous amendments before it receives Royal Assent and becomes enacted as law. Given the exceptionally sensitive nature of this bill it is unlikely that it will become effective within the next year. Therefore, for a significant period of time terminally ill people will have to still travel abroad to locations like Switzerland if they wish to end their lives in an medically assisted way.
As the law has not yet changed this still leaves relatives or friends of those wishing to die in an uncertain position if they accompany or assist their relatives attend an assisted dying clinic abroad. However, regardless of the complexities of that area, the recent case of Morris v Morris has provided some clarity to the position of those that merely travel to an assisted dying clinic with their loved ones.
The rule of forfeiture
There is a long established rule that individuals who murder someone who has made provision for that individual in a Will are deemed to forefeit their right to receive that provision. This is known as the rule of forfeiture, and can also apply where someone also assists another person to commit suicide, as per the Suicide Act 1961. Therefore, potentially a person who merely accompanies a loved one attending an assisted dying clinic could have been subject to this rule. They could have been deemed to have assisted in the deceased’s death to an extent that they were prohibited from inheriting anything from their estate.
The facts of Morris v Morris
This case concerned the story of Myra Morris, a 73-year-old woman who had struggled for several years with multiple system atrophy. Mrs Morris decided to travel to Switzerland with her husband and adult children in order to end her own life. At the clinic in Switzerland Mrs Morris self-administered a lethal drug dose with the help of the clinic’s staff causing her to die on 5 December 2023.
Mrs Morris made a will on 9 December 2021 with her husband as the main beneficiary of the estate and her children as the secondary beneficiaries. However, because of the default effect of the rules of forfeiture, Mrs Morris’ husband had to make an application to the Court in order to apply for relief modifying the effect of the forfeiture rule.
Mr Morris had helped contact the assisted dying clinic, assisted making administrative arrangements for his wife to travel to the clinic and completed paperwork related to Myra’s decision to take her own life. Upon his return to the UK, after Mrs Morris passed away, Mr Morris reported his actions to the police although no charges were brought. Whilst Mr Morris had sought legal advice regarding how to avoid prosecution for assisting his wife’s decision to end her life, he had not been given advice on how to avoid being subject to the forfeiture rule. Therefore, he was distressed when he found out he would need to make an application in order to not be subject to the rule of forfeiture.
Decision in Morris v Morris
Mr Morris was successful in his application for relief and the Court chose to disapply the forfeiture rule. Mrs Morris’ children merely accompanied her to the suicide clinic in Switzerland. The Court also confirmed that the act of them merely accompanying Mrs Morris is not in itself enough to cause the application of the forfeiture rule on them. However, it should be noted that this was effectively an uncontested court application.
Conclusion of the case
Whilst it is anticipated that the eventual passing of the assisted dying bill will provide much more clarity into the topic of assisted dying, this case is an important indicator of the status of those that merely accompany a loved one to an assisted dying clinic outside of the UK
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Link to full judgment: https://assets.caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewhc/ch/2024/2554/ewhc_ch_2024_2554.pdf