Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A physiological state in which a female carries a developing embryo or fetus within the uterus. This condition triggers specific statutory disclosure duties in family-law proceedings.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
6
Divorce Petition Disclosure
Paul Peterson files for divorce from Portia Price in a state that follows the Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act. The complaint must list all living children and state whether Portia is pregnant. Failure to include the pregnancy information renders the petition incomplete under the statute.
Pre-Viability Abortion Challenge
Pearl Porter, a pregnant college student, seeks an abortion at a clinic in a state that bans the procedure before viability. She sues to enjoin enforcement of the ban. The court must decide whether the pregnancy triggers any remaining federal constitutional protection.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Cases
Statutes
Uniform Acts
Model Codes
Restatements
Casebooks
Hornbooks
Course Outlines
Study Supplements
Roe v. Wade410 U.S. 113 (1973)
Informed-Consent Waiting Period
Phuong Pham learns she is pregnant and schedules an abortion at a Pennsylvania clinic. State law requires a twenty-four-hour waiting period and physician disclosure of alternatives. She challenges the requirements as an undue burden on her pregnancy decision.
Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey505 U.S. 833, 112 S. Ct. 2791, 120 L. Ed. 2d 674 (1992)
Punitive-Damages Insurance File
Peter Park, an insurance adjuster, fabricates a note claiming an accident victim was speeding to visit a pregnant girlfriend. The false entry surfaces during discovery in a bad-faith suit. The court considers whether the fabrication supports an award of punitive damages against the insurer.
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Campbell538 U.S. 408, 123 S.Ct. 1513, 155 L.Ed.2d 585 (2003)
Clinic Buffer-Zone Challenge
Philip Powell operates a women's health center where pregnant patients receive abortions. A state court injunction creates a thirty-six-foot buffer zone around the entrance. The center challenges the zone as an unconstitutional restriction on speech near pregnant patients.
Madsen v. Women’s Health Center, Inc.512 U.S. 753 (1994)
Bendectin Birth-Defect Testimony
Pioneer Energy's expert witnesses testify that a drug taken by pregnant women caused limb-reduction defects. Plaintiffs move to exclude the testimony under Daubert standards. The court must determine whether the expert opinions rest on reliable scientific methods linking the drug to pregnancy outcomes.
Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc.509 U.S. 579, 592 (1993)
Common questions
Frequently Asked
4
Must a divorce petition disclose a spouse's pregnancy?+
Yes. Under the Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act, the petition must state whether the wife is pregnant so the court can address support, custody, and related issues before final judgment.
Supporting sources
How does pregnancy affect class gifts under the rule against perpetuities?+
A child in gestation at the measuring date is treated as in being if later born viable, allowing inclusion in the class even though not yet born at the decedent's death.
Supporting sources
Does a personal representative risk surcharge for ignoring possible posthumous pregnancy?+
A personal representative may be surcharged only if, within six months of death, the representative received notice or had actual knowledge of an intent to use genetic material for assisted reproduction resulting in pregnancy.
Supporting sources
When is a gestational carrier eligible to enter a surrogacy agreement?+
Eligibility requires the carrier to be at least twenty-one, to have previously given birth, and to complete both medical and mental-health evaluations plus independent legal representation.
Supporting sources
410 U.S. 113 (1973)Constitutional Law
…action as plaintiffs. The Does alleged that they were a childless married couple, that the wife had a medical condition making pregnancy dangerous, and that they had been unable to find a doctor willing to perform an abortion on the wife. The action was brought against the District Attorney of the county in which the…