title: Assisted reproductive technologies in Portuguese law--commentary to the Judgment no. 101/2009, of March the 3rd of the Portuguese Constitutional Court.
abstract: Recently the Portuguese Constitutional Court was asked to analyze the constitutionality of the law on assisted reproduction, Law nr 32/2006. The request was presented by a conservative group, arguing, basically, that the law disregarded the juridical protection due to the embryo and to the participants in reproductive techniques. The main critics pointed out were related with the legitimacy of using reproductive techniques, the absence of a maximum age for beneficiaries, the authorization of embryo experimentation, the decision of not criminalizing every contract of surrogate motherhood, among some other critics. However, the Court concluded that none of the pointed norms went against Constitutional rules and principles.
authors.affiliation: Law Faculty, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Vera Lúcia
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Raposo
authors.forename: Rafael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vale e Reis
mesh_terms: D003249:Constitution and Bylaws; D006801:Humans; D011174:Portugal; D027724:Reproductive Techniques, Assisted / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*