In this article, we examine emerging challenges to medical law arising from healthcare globalisation concerning disputes between parents and healthcare professionals in the care and treatment of critically ill children. We explore a series of issues emerging in English case law concerning...

This article examines the operation of the “best interests” test in relation to life and death decisions involving very young children. It is in this context that the best interests standard operates most acutely because it is not clouded by other considerations, especially individual...

This paper examines the few, but important legal and coronial cases concerning withdrawing or withholding life-sustaining treatment from severely disabled or critically impaired infants in Australia. Although sparse in number, the judgements should influence common clinical practices based on...

This article considers the implications that recent euthanasia developments in Belgium might have for the Australian debate on assisted dying. Through media database and internet searches, four significant developments in Belgium were identified: three cases involving individuals who requested...

This article provides a critical examination of the allocation of scarce public health care funds in relation to extremely premature and sick neonates. Decisions to withdraw or withhold life-sustaining treatment from neonates born extremely premature are generally informed by arbitrary and often...

• Australia has a shortfall in donated hearts for transplantation• Heart procurement after ‘cardiac death' (DCD) is a potential supply additional to ‘brain death'• Heart procurement for transplantation after DCD may not conform to the ‘dead donor rule' • An amendment in law is...