Top Five 2011: Rasouli v Sunnybrook Health Science Centre
Each year at OJEN’s Toronto Summer Law Institute, a judge from the Court of Appeal for Ontario identifies five cases that are of significance in the educational setting. This summary, based on these comments and observations, is appropriate for discussion and debate in the classroom setting.
Rasouli v Sunnybrook Health Science Centre, 2011 ONCA 482
Under the Health Care Consent Act (HCCA), any medical treatment requires the consent of the patient or that patient’s legal substitute decision-maker. In this case, the Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) considered whether removing life support when a patient appears non-responsive is a form of medical treatment. This case is currently (September 2013) under review at the Supreme Court of Canada. The full decision is available here.