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eu·tha·na·sia /ˌyü-thə-'nā-zhə/ n: the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured persons in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy – called also mercy killing;eu·tha·na·sic /-'nā-zik, -sik/ adj
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
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n.Mercy killing; painlessly killing someone who is suffering from a painful incurable disease or who is in a coma and has no hope of ever waking up.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
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'a happy death', the killing of another person to comply with the wishes of the victim (express or implied) where the victim is incurably ill and in pain or some miserable state. It is illegal in the UK: Att. Gen. v . Able [1984] QB 795. The House of Lords, in Alvedale NHS Trust v . Bland 1993 TLR 47, held that it was not unlawful for doctors to withdraw life-supporting medical treatment from a patient in a persistent vegetative state who had no prospect of improvement, even where it was known that death would result in a matter of weeks. The patient was not brain-stem dead. Nonetheless, it was pointed out forcefully that this was not euthanasia, which is actually causing death to avoid or end suffering.
Collins dictionary of law. W. J. Stewart. 2001.
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Bringing about the death of a person who is terminally ill and, usually, suffering. Sometimes called mercy killing.Category: Divorce & Family Law → Elder Care & SeniorsCategory: Wills, Trusts & Estates → Living Wills & Medical Powers of Attorney
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
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n. The process of terminating the life of another by merciful or painless means, to prevent further suffering.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
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(Greek, good death.)The term normally implies an intentional termination of life by another at the explicit request of the person who wishes to die. Euthanasia is generally defined as the act of killing an incurably ill person out of concern and compassion for that person's suffering.It is sometimes called mercy killing, but many advocates of euthanasia define mercy killing more precisely as the ending of another person's life without his or her request. Euthanasia, on the other hand, is usually separated into two categories: passive euthanasia and active euthanasia.In many jurisdictions, active euthanasia can be considered murder or manslaughter, whereas passive euthanasia is accepted by professional medical societies, and by the law under certain circumstances.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
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[Greek, good death.] The term normally implies an intentional termination of life by another at the explicit request of the person who wishes to die. Euthanasia is generally defined as the act of killing an incurably ill person out of concern and compassion for that person's suffering.It is sometimes called mercy killing, but many advocates of euthanasia define mercy killing more precisely as the ending of another person's life without his or her request. Euthanasia, on the other hand, is usually separated into two categories: passive euthanasia and active euthanasia.In many jurisdictions, active euthanasia can be considered murder or manslaughter, whereas passive euthanasia is accepted by professional medical societies, and by the law under certain circumstances.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
