Developing a Legal Framework for Resolving Disputes Between "Adoptive Parents" of Frozen Embryos: A Comparison to Resolutions of Divorce Disputes Between Progenitors

Abstract

Embryo donation has drawn increasing attention as an alternative to using frozen embryos for stem cell research and as a method of providing infertile couples with an opportunity to realize their goal of becoming parents. Although embryo donation offers significant advantages for recipient ("adoptive") couples, it is unclear what would happen if a couple who had adopted frozen embryos subsequently divorced and disagreed about what should be done with them. This Note examines how current embryo donation statutes and contract law are insufficient for resolving this scenario. It further presents a potential resolution of disputes over embryo disposition in the context of a subsequent divorce of the recipient couple by analogizing to divorce disputes between progenitors (couples whose genetic material was used to create the embryos). This Note concludes that the most useful analogy to progenitor cases is a balancing of the procreative liberty of each member of the recipient couple but that this approach should be modified to account for the Jack of a genetic connection to the donated embryos.