Damages Awarded for Births Following Negligent Abortion and Sterilisation

Abstract

Background information and the decisions in three recent wrongful birth court cases in Britain are summarized. One case involved damages claimed for the birth of a healthy infant to a single mother after an unsuccessful abortion attempt; the second concerned a negligence action brought when a handicapped infant was born subsequent to her mother's sterilization; and the third was a claim for damages when a healthy son was born to the mother of four daughters after she had been sterilized. The public policy implications of the latter action were of particular concern to the Court of Appeal that decided the case. (KIE abstract)