[Legal liability in risk of suicide from the legal viewpoint]

The liability during the danger of a patient committing suicide has to be orientated on the discretion which is granted to the physician. The suicide must be specifically prevented during a clear danger of suicide or a tendency of a patient to harm himself. However, is there a lack of clear signs, the physician is granted more discretion. Physicians have to assess the risk in every individual case. Criteria for this assessment are the predictability and the possibility to prevent a suicide attempt. The patient has to be referred to psychiatric treatment when there are clear symptoms of a psychiatric illness.