The Human Rights Act 1998 and reproductive rights.

Abstract

The Human Rights Act 1998 has sparked a rights revolution in the UK with the incorporation into domestic law of the European Convention on Human Rights. This means an increased role for the judiciary in the interpretation of fundamental rights claims and a greater scope for litigants in pursuing alleged breaches of human rights before thr national courts. In the area of reproduction, while the Convention guarantees neither a 'right to reproduce' nor a 'right not to reproduce', some of its provisions appear to clash with existing national legislative provisions on abortion and new reproductive technologies. An exploration of the various incompatibilities between domestic and European reproductive rights law suggests that the time is ripe for legal challenges by individuals and by both pro- and anti-choice organisations.