She wants their frozen embryos so she can get pregnant. Her ex-husband wants the IVF-created embryos donated to other couples who want children. After a couple divorces, what should happen to their yet-to-be implanted embryos?
That question is before the Ohio Supreme Court in a case that could shed light on how justices interpret the voter-approved reproductive rights constitutional amendment . The amendment protects individuals’ rights to make a carry out their own reproductive decisions on abortion or fertility treatments.
The high court agreed to take up the case of a Summit County ex-couple, identified in court filings by the initials R.N. and E.B.N.
The 9th District Court of Appeals sided with the ex-wife, saying her desire to be pregnant outweighs his “procreational-autonomy rights.” The ex-husband said the appeals court decision would force him to become an “involuntary parent.”
The ex-husband’s attorneys said in court filings that the case is about, before any pregnancy occurs, someone can obtain a court order that forces someone else to become a parent. If the appeals decision is allowed to stand, it could put a chill on couples’ decisions to use IVF across the state, the ex-husband argues.