• Giuseppe Benagiano and Luca Gianaroli.
• Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy. gbenagiano@libero.it
• Reprod. Biomed. Online. 2010 Mar 1;20(3):398-402.

AbstractOn 8 May 2009, the Italian Constitutional Court declared, at least in part, that the law regulating assisted reproduction technology in Italy (Law 40/04) is unconstitutional. The most important theoretical point made by the Court is that the law does not provide unlimited protection to embryos, since it admits that some of them may not produce a viable fetus. Embryo protection is therefore limited by the imperative to ensure a concrete possibility to achieve a successful pregnancy. The Court also reaffirmed the need to empower the attending physician with the means to carry out a full evaluation. At present, the situation is not clear and, theoretically, requires a new intervention by Parliament. This, however, is unlikely.Copyright 2009 Reproductive Healthcare Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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