Though prosecutions under the Suicide Act 1961 are rare, the forfeiture rule means those who assist suicide risk losing inheritance rights. Landmark cases Ninian and Morris illustrate when courts will grant relief, focusing on moral culpability and whether conduct was truly ‘capable of encouraging or assisting’.
The authors then discuss the unreported 2025 decision in David Peace, where all beneficiaries agreed the deceased’s wishes should stand. The court, recognising the sensitivity of the area, blessed the executor’s proposed distribution but declined to create a universal rule, emphasising case-specific public-policy analysis.
Payet and Critchley conclude that practitioners must carefully assess each matter, particularly where compassion, autonomy and legal risk intersect.
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