Opinion ID: 1058201
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Genetics

Text: Both statute and sound policy support genetics as an important factor in establishing legal maternity. Human reproduction as we now know it cannot take place without the involvement of genetic material. As analyzed above, Tennessee's domestic relations statutes provide for the establishment of legal maternity based on genetic consanguinity. See §§ 36-2-302(4) (defining mother as the biological mother of a child born out of wedlock), 36-1-102(10) (defining biological parents as the woman and man who physically or genetically conceived the child). In emphasizing genetics, Belsito recognizes and honors an individual's decision to procreate or to refrain from procreating. 644 N.E.2d at 766 (The procreation of a child, that is, the replication of the unique genes of an individual, should occur only with the consent of that individual. (citing Davis, 842 S.W.2d at 588)). As we held in Davis , such decisions enjoy constitutional protection. 842 S.W.2d at 600-01. However, our recognition in Davis of the constitutional right to control the disposition of one's genetic material does not mean that Davis stands for the proposition that genetics must be paramount in all parentage determinations. In cases such as this one, where a woman has become intimately involved in the procreation process even though she has not contributed genetic material, factors other than genetics take on special significance.