Quebec's top court rules assisted dying law can go ahead

Quebec's Court of Appeal has maintained the province's right to allow terminally ill patients the choice to die with medical help, the first law of its kind in Canada.

This morning, athree-judge Court of Appeal paneloverturned a Dec. 1 Quebec Superior Courtjudgment aimed atsuspending implementation of the province's law, Bill 52, until certain provisions of the CriminalCode were changed.

In the ruling, the Court of Appealsaidthe Quebec lawdoesn't contravenesections of the Criminal Code related to assisted dyingbecause theywere struck down by Canada's Supreme Court last February.

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It said the provincial legislationfills a judicial void by allowing patients to exercise their rights granted to them by Canada's top court.

We will continue to work with Quebec, as well as the other provinces and territories, to develop aco-ordinatedapproach to physician-assisted dying across the country.-JodyWilson-Raybould, federal justice minister

The Court of Appealalso urged the federal government to develop federal legislation "that would apply in Quebec as well as in the rest of Canada."

Quebec Health MinisterGatan Barrettetold CBC News the court decision shows that the province "has been respectful of the current legislation.

"We're offering citizens of this province a continuum of options and that's the very essence of the bill," he said.

"We believe in this province that society has evolved to a point where citizens have the right to choose."

The Quebec law, whichwas passed by a large marginin Quebec's National Assembly in June 2014,has been in effect since Dec.10 while thecourt was considering an appeal from agroup of physicians and others.

Vronique Hivon,thePartiQubcoisMNAwho introduced the bill when her party was in power, said the legislation was a non-partisan effort.

"Today is an emotional day," she said."We are really seen as a leader. Other provinces, even the federal government, are really consulting with Quebec, looking very seriously at our legislation."

Palliative care should be priority, critics say

Those in favour of the temporary blocking of the end-of-life legislation argued that medically assisted death should be considereda criminal act until the federal government changes those provisions deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

They also tried to argue that medical help in dying infringes on the right to life enshrined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

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"Nobody should be euthanized,"Dr. PaulSaba, a family physician and president of the Coalition of Physicians for Social Justice, which led the legal fight against the law, said last week."What they call medical aid in dying, well, is shortening somebody's life. The way of treating somebody's life is not by ending life, but palliative care."

Federal governmentto draw 'inspiration' from Quebec law

The new federal Liberal government is seeking a six-month extension on the Supreme Court of Canada's deadline which, if granted, would give it until August to come up with a new law.

Federal Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybouldissued a statement saying the government is reviewing the details of thedecision.

"We recognize the leadership that Quebec has demonstrated in developing its own legislation on physician-assisted dying," the statement reads.

"We will continue to work with Quebec, as well as the other provinces and territories, to develop a co-ordinated approach to physician-assisted dying across the country."

The Supreme Court will hold an oral hearing on Jan. 11 as it considersOttawa's request for the extension.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said earlier this month that the federal governmentwill draw "inspiration" from Quebec's legislationas it drafts new federal laws.

Olivier Duchesneau said Trudeau appreciates the "incredible work" done by Quebec's National Assembly on the sensitive issue, and praised Quebec parliamentarians for putting partisanship aside to reach consensus.

The national organization Dying With Dignity Canada welcomed Tuesday's decision.

CEOWanda Morris said she's hopeful provinces like Ontario and British Columbia, as well asthe federal government,will follow Quebec's lead and introduce similar legislation.