European Court Of Human Rights Rules British Woman Cannot Use Frozen Embryos Without Former Fiance's Consent

Main Category: Fertility
Article Date: 10 Mar 2006 - 21:00 PDT


The European Court of Human Rights on Tuesday upheld a U.K. law, ruling that a British woman does not have the right to use frozen embryos for in vitro fertilization without the permission of the man with whom the embryos were created, the AP/Boston Globe reports (AP/Boston Globe, 3/7). The case involves Natallie Evans, who created six embryos with her former fiance, Howard Johnston, before undergoing cancer treatments that left her infertile. The relationship later ended, and Johnston withdrew his consent to allow the embryos to be used for IVF. In the legal challenge, Evans argued that the U.K.'s 1990 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act preventing her from using the embryos violated her human rights. The law says that embryos created for IVF must be destroyed unless both parties who contributed genetic material consent to their storage and use. Evans said that if she had become pregnant naturally and the embryo were in her body, Johnston would not have had a say over whether she had a right to use the embryos. The U.K. High Court in 2003 ruled against Evans (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 10/2/03). The European Court of Human Rights in its ruling on Tuesday said, "The court, like the national courts, had great sympathy for the plight of the applicant who, if implantation did not take place, would be deprived of the ability to give birth to her own child." However, the court added that Evans' right to a family, as defined by the Council of Europe's Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, does not supersede Johnston's withdrawal of consent (BBC News, 3/7). The court also said that national laws define when the right to life begins, and British law says that an embryo does not have rights, according to the AP/Globe (AP/Boston Globe, 3/7). Evans said she plans to appeal the case to the Grand Jury of the European Court (BBC News, 3/7). The court asked the British government to ensure that the embryos are preserved until Evans' appeals are exhausted, the AP/Globe reports (AP/Boston Globe, 3/7).

NPR's "All Things Considered" on Tuesday reported on the decision. The segment includes comments from Evans, Johnston and Michael Wilkes, chair of the ethics committee of the British Medical Association (Gifford, "All Things Considered," NPR, 3/7). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

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