Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America

Bibliographic Details
Main Author:	Vernon, Jeffrey T.
Language:	English
Published:	The Ohio State University / OhioLINK 2015
Subjects:	American History Law Legal Studies
Online Access:	http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1437558798

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spelling	ndltd-OhioLink-oai-etd.ohiolink.edu-osu14375587982021-08-03T06:32:07Z Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America Vernon, Jeffrey T. American History Law Legal Studies In 1978, scientists finally succeeded at creating life outside the human body. Dr. Robert Edwards and Dr. Patrick Steptoe managed to fertilize the eggs of Leslie Brown in a culture media before placing the resulting zygote in her uterus. Louise Brown, the world’s first child conceived outside of the human body was born on July 25, 1978 in Oldham, United Kingdom. This astonishing accomplishment in medical science earned Dr. Edwards the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. However, the advancement in reproductive technology drew controversy, long before it became a reality. Critics asked, do scientists have the right to control biological reproduction and in a sense play God? Do these advances pave the way for human engineering, a development dangerously close to eugenics? How should the law intervene to ensure ethical practices in the medical field? How are issues of class interconnected with access to fertility treatment? This study centers on the New Jersey court cases comprising the Baby M litigation. Ultimately, the New Jersey Supreme Court in Baby M concluded that the surrogacy agreement between Mary Beth Whitehead (the surrogate) and the Sterns (the prospective parents) was void due to public policy. Surrogacy agreements, governed by contract, often reflect the social norms of those involved in constructing them. Moreover, the issue of surrogacy agreements, along with in vitro fertilization and other methods of assisted reproductive technologies challenged notions and principles held in family law since the colonial period. These challenges have strained the legal system, pressuring it to adapt, causing it to adopt some previously established legal frameworks while modifying others. Scholars have long focused on the regulation of the limiting forces acting on human fertility. In other words, existing historical research largely explores fertility regulation through the lens of population control, abortion, sex education and contraception. This project explores the inverse, the way the law and legal institutions sought to define the boundaries of expanding forces on fertility, such as, in vitro fertilization, surrogacy, artificial insemination and other forms of fertility treatment through the monumental judicial decisions in the Baby M case. In doing so, this project investigates the influences and processes by which the legislative and judicial branches in the United States have constructed policy choices and crafted legal solutions to govern the practice of surrogacy. 2015-10-15 English text The Ohio State University / OhioLINK http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1437558798 http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1437558798 unrestricted This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws.
collection	NDLTD
language	English
sources	NDLTD
topic	American History Law Legal Studies
spellingShingle	American History Law Legal Studies Vernon, Jeffrey T. Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America
author	Vernon, Jeffrey T.
author_facet	Vernon, Jeffrey T.
author_sort	Vernon, Jeffrey T.
title	Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America
title_short	Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America
title_full	Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America
title_fullStr	Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America
title_full_unstemmed	Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America
title_sort	solomon's judgment: baby m and the struggle to define motherhood and morality in modern america
publisher	The Ohio State University / OhioLINK
publishDate	2015
url	http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1437558798
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Solomon's Judgment: Baby M and the Struggle to Define Motherhood and Morality in Modern America

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