Sedated dying and ‘living wills’

A law on ‘sedated dying’ came into force in 2016. ‘Sedated dying’ refers to allowing terminally ill patients to be put into a state of ‘deep and continuous sedation’ until they die naturally.

Under the law, which stopped short of legalising euthanasia or assisted suicide, doctors can stop life-sustaining treatment. Sedation and painkillers can be administered even if they could shorten the person’s life.

The French president at the time, François Hollande, had pledged in his election campaign to re-examine the law on euthanasia, which is illegal in France. A law passed in 2005 allows so-called ‘passive euthanasia’, in which any treatment needed to keep a person alive is withheld or withdrawn.

A 2015 law that expanded on this remains the main law on the issue. A 2024 bill, which referred to ‘an active help to die’, was cancelled in 2024 when President Macron dissolved parliament.

The co-author of the 2015 law, Jean Leonetti, said the text meant: “At the end of your life, if the suffering is unbearable, you will be allowed to go to sleep, soothed and serene.” The then health minister Marisol Touraine, who had said she did not support euthanasia, said: “This is a major breakthrough which enshrines the will of the person, freedom of the person and human dignity.”

The same law also made ‘living wills’ (which may be drafted by people who do not want to be kept alive artificially if they become too ill to decide) legally binding on doctors, unless their wishes appear inappropriate or inconsistent with the medical situation. See Chapter 5 for more.

These wishes (directives anticipées in France) have to be written out, dated and signed. See here for a suggested example of wording. You can also ask your GP for advice about what to include in these directives anticipées.

If you are not capable of writing, you can ask two witnesses to draft them for you instead (or get a third party to do so) and add a signed, dated, attestation stating that these wishes, as written up by themselves or the third party, express your will. One should be your personne de confiance if you have one (a trusted person to help you if you are ill). You can designate this person at any time and on going into the hospital you will be asked to name one.

The attestation should indicate the witnesses’ full names and relationship to you, and should be kept with the living will. Inform your doctor and loved-ones about where to find the documents and include copies in your online medical dossier (Mon espace santé) if you have one.

The French ‘power of attorney’: What are the options? 

What is the French equivalent of a power of attorney?

A ‘power of of attorney’ in English-speaking countries is a process whereby you name someone to make decisions for you in the future if you become unable to do so. It involves either or both finances and property or health and welfare. 

The French equivalent is the mandat de protection future. However there are also two simple procedures related to bank accounts or healthcare – procuration and naming a personne de conference, which you can also make use of.

A person can sign a form for their bank designating someone who can also manage their account – a procuration. Similarly, anyone going into hospital can write a letter to the hospital designating a personne de confiance who can help them with formalities and who will be consulted if they cannot express their wishes. 

This can also be done in other contexts, such as a letter to a person’s GP. The mandat de protection future is more wide-ranging and allows people to plan ahead avoiding the need for a judge to rule on tutelle or curatelle. 

Tutelle and curatelle are similar to the mandat but are imposed should a person become incapable of taking responsibility for themselves. The mandat de protection future is a contract designating one or more people who you wish to take responsibility for looking after you and/or all or part of your property, which comes into effect if your health declines to the extent that you need their help. 

The designated mandataires apply to a tribunal d’instance court with a medical certificate to activate it if and when necessary. The contract states the powers conferred and can be drawn up with or without the help of a notaire. 

The former version confers greater legal powers, such as the ability to sell a home. English-speaking notaires can be identified via notaires.fr. 

Setting up a notarised mandat usually requires the presence of everyone concerned, that is to say the elderly/incapacitated person and their intended mandataires (the people who will have power of attorney). 

Having said that, some notaires allow mandataires who live abroad to accept their duties without coming to France, with assistance from a foreign lawyer. It would be possible, if there are significant assets both abroad and France, to consider arranging both foreign and French mechanisms as, while in principle both the UK and France, for example, recognise each other’s arrangements, the two are most effective on their respective territories and there can be complications in making use of a foreign power of attorney in France.

 A mandat has to be set up while the person is in reasonable health and able to make their own decisions, as opposed to the alternative procedure, habilitation familiale, which was added to the traditional options. 

This is intended to be fairly simple to set up and once in place does not require any ongoing input from a judge (unlike curatelle and tutelle). This can only be used by one or more close family members (ascendant or descendant) or a spouse or civil partner and can either be set up conferring specific powers (not including making gifts and bequests) or general, wide-ranging ones.

 It can allow for the sale of property and access to bank accounts. It is activated on request, backed by doctor’s advice and must be approved by a juge des tutelles (judge) at the tribunal d’instance once he or she has checked there are no objections from other family members. It lasts up to 10 years but a judge can end it at any point in the case of difficulties.