Leben und Sterben in Richterhand?

The debate on euthanasia as well as the discussion concerning living wills as a possible instrument for ensuring autonomy at the end of a person's life are receiving a great deal of attention at the moment. The views on an appropriate relationship between the patient's autonomy and the protection of integrity at the end of a person's life have shown that there are far-reaching differences of opinion on this subject. This also applies to the question if and to what extent the judges of guardianship courts are to be included in these decision-making processes. Against this backdrop and with a view to the lawmakers' reaction, which is imperative and is intended, Wolfram Höfling and Anne Schäfer present a methodical study of the attitudes of the judges of guardianship courts as well as their decision-making criteria. In doing so, they put the analysis of the results of the survey carried out among the German judges of guardianship trial courts into its normative and political context.