If bash had the ERR_RETURN option, it would overcome the fundamental problem described in SR #110223 (https://savannah.gnu.org/support/?110223), without breaking POSIX compliance (assuming the new option is off by default).

I am raising this as level "4-Important' rather than "1-Wish, because SR #110223 is level 4.

From 'info zsh':

ERR_RETURN

If a command has a non-zero exit status, return immediately from the enclosing function.  The logic is similar to that for ERR_EXIT, except that an implicit return statement is executed instead of an exit.  This will trigger an exit at the outermost level of a non-interactive script.

Normally this option inherits the behaviour of ERR_EXIT that code followed by `&&' `||' does not trigger a return. Hence in the following:

   summit || true

no return is forced as the combined effect always has a zero return status.

Note, however, that if summit in the above example is itself a function, code inside it is considered separately: it may force a return from summit (assuming the option remains set within summit), but not from the enclosing context.  This behaviour is different from ERR_EXIT which is unaffected by function scope.