Embryonic Structures Commons^™

Legal Disputes Over Frozen Embryos After Dobbs: A Retrospective Study Of Claims, Contracts, And Liability In Cases Of Divorce Or Separation, Gerard Letterie, Dov Fox

Pace Law Review

This study reviewed legal claims and clinic liability over disputed frozen embryos in cases of divorce or separation. Our data shows that one-third of cases had no prior arrangement regarding disposition about what to do in the event of separation or divorce. When agreements were in place they were rarely clear enough to determine the court’s resolution in these cases. In a post-Dobbs era, absence of adequate guidance could have significant implications regarding liability for all parties.

Are Embryos Or Fetuses Brain Dead? Implications For The Abortion Debate, Greer Donley

Pace Law Review

Most state abortion definitions exclude the removal of a dead fetus, attempting to distinguish miscarriage and abortion care. But what does “dead” mean at the earliest stages of potential life? There is a consensus at the end of life that death not only encompasses the cessation of cardiac activity, but also brain death. This symposium essay considers whether life can only begin with the emergence of brain life and if so, how that might impact the abortion debate. The most rudimentary brain waves cannot be detected in an embryo before roughly the eighth week of pregnancy; the capacity for feeling …

Personhood, Politics, Assisted Reproduction, And The Law Post-Dobbs, Myrisha S. Lewis

Pace Law Review

With the end of the federal constitutional right to abortion, state legislatures and state courts have become far more important in the sphere of reproductive rights. Before Dobbs, anti-abortion advocates had significant (albeit increasingly porous) ceilings on what they could prohibit in relation to reproductive health care. A significant check on those actions is now gone.

In the wake of Dobbs, societal debates about personhood have increased and expanded in terms of their practical implications. Before Dobbs, anti-abortion advocates admitted that Roe and subsequent cases limited the scope of their arguments, especially in relation to the legality …