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Living will; information on stipulations
In a living will, you can set out in writing in advance your wishes regarding the type and manner of medical treatment in the event of your own incapacity to make decisions.
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Procedure details
Description
As long as you as a patient are capable of giving consent, you yourself decide on all medical measures concerning you after being informed and advised by the doctor. This also applies if a guardian has been appointed to look after your health. However, if you are no longer capable of making decisions, in particular if you can no longer express your wishes, an authorized representative or guardian must make decisions for you. If neither a proxy nor a guardian has been appointed for you, the doctor must act in accordance with your "presumed will" in the case of urgent measures. Your "presumed will" is decisive for any medical treatment that you are no longer able to express yourself about, unless you have drawn up a written living will. If necessary, your authorized representative or guardian must determine how you would decide if you were still able to express your wishes.
Determining your "presumed wishes" can be very difficult if you have never expressed your ideas for medical treatment in writing or even verbally in the past, e.g. to relatives, especially in the last phase of your life. It is therefore important to set this out in advance in a living will.
The living will must not only contain general formulations, such as the wish to "die with dignity" if a tolerable life no longer seems possible. Rather, it must specify the conditions under which treatment may not be started or continued. In order to comply with the case law of the Federal Court of Justice, a living will must contain both specific medical measures (such as artificial nutrition) that are to be carried out or omitted, as well as sufficiently concretely described treatment situations for which the living will is to apply. When formulating the medical conditions, care should be taken not to use undefined legal terms that are open to interpretation, such as "severe" brain damage, which are not clear in themselves. It is advisable to use a sample form and to seek medical advice before formulating a living will.
You can find more detailed information and a sample form for a living will in the information brochure "Precautions for accidents, illness and old age" published by the Bavarian State Ministry of Justice (see "Further links").
Legal bases
Related links
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Zentrales Vorsorgeregister (ZVR)Das Zentrale Vorsorgeregister (ZVR) ist die Registrierungsstelle für private sowie notarielle Vorsorgevollmachten, Betreuungsverfügungen und Patientenverfügungen aus dem ganzen Bundesgebiet.
Related issues
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Advance care directive; information on drawing it upAnyone can use a care directive to make precautionary arrangements for a later care case.
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Lasting power of attorney; information on drawing it up
With a power of attorney, you can make provisions in the event that you are no longer able to manage your own affairs, for example as a result of an accident or illness.
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Registering health care proxies and advance care directives in the central register of health care proxies
If you have set up a power of attorney and/or a care directive, you should register it in the Central Register of Lasting Powers of Attorney of the Federal Chamber of Notaries.
Status: 05.03.2025
Editorial responsibility Bayerisches Staatsministerium der Justiz
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