Alabama court’s ruling that embryos are children opens up a host of other legal issues, including parental rights

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Dara E. Purvis, Penn State

(THE CONVERSATION) The Alabama Supreme Court ruled on Feb. 21, 2024, that the word “child” also means frozen embryos, which are typically implanted via in vitro fertilization.

Within a week of the decision, three of the state’s seven IVF clinics temporarily stopped all IVF services. Three others announced they would no longer discard any embryos in storage. Spokespeople for the clinics said they were worried that the Supreme Court decision meant that they would be liable for wrongful death if any embryos were destroyed, even as part of normal clinic operations.

Patients planning to undergo IVF treatment at the clinics that stopped services were devastated.

One woman, Gabrielle Goidel, was planning IVF after three previous pregnancies ended in miscarriage. The fertility clinic told her that it could move forward with her scheduled egg retrieval, but it was not sure if doctors could then create or store embryos made with her eggs. Goidel said it was “absolutely my worst fear,” and she found a...