ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the status of reproductive choice in the United States. The concept of wrongful life vividly demonstrates the interaction between reproductive technology, social values, and the law. Shifts in Supreme Court interpretation of the Constitution, even within several decades, is often subtle but at times drastic, especially in the area of civil rights and the assimilation of individual liberties in cases of conflict. These alterations of the law in response to social change are important and evident indicators of change and, conversely, might serve to initiate change. The chapter explores the social-legal context of human sterilization as a means of reproduction control and examines that the current transformation sterilization issues are undergoing in light of the emerging reversible techniques. The legal landscape of nonconsensual sterilizations, however, is even more confused than the framework for voluntary applications.
