A Legal Win for Stem Cell Research, but Case May Not Be Over
By Jocelyn Kaiser,
Science
| 08. 24. 2012
A U.S. appeals court today upheld the legality of federally funded research on human embryonic stem cells (hESCs)—the latest in a string of wins for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in a 3-year legal battle with groups that for moral reasons want to block the use of these cells. But although hESC researchers can breathe easy for now, the 27-page decision suggests the battle over hESCs may not be quite over.
"It's a clear victory for us. We've very happy with the opinion," says Amy Comstock Rick, an attorney and president of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research, which defends hESC work. However, because the three judges in the appeal of Sherley v. Sebelius issued separate opinions in favor of NIH and used different reasoning, the plaintiffs who filed suit against NIH might have a shot at another review, some legal experts say.
Samuel Casey, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said in a statement: "We are disappointed by the Court of Appeals decision and, given the reasoning in the two concurring opinions, we are evaluating whether and...
Related Articles
By Alondra Nelson, Science | 09.11.2025
In the United States, the summer of 2025 will be remembered as artificial intelligence’s (AI’s) cruel summer—a season when the unheeded risks and dangers of AI became undeniably clear. Recent months have made visible the stakes of the unchecked use...
By Emma McDonald Kennedy
| 09.25.2025
In the leadup to the 2024 election, Donald Trump repeatedly promised to make IVF more accessible. He made the commitment central to his campaign, even referring to himself as the “father of IVF.” In his first month in office, Trump issued an executive order promising to expand IVF access. The order set a 90-day deadline for policy recommendations for “lowering costs and reducing barriers to IVF,” although it didn’t make any substantive reproductive healthcare policy changes.
The response to the...
By Johana Bhuiyan, The Guardian | 09.23.2025
In March 2021, a 25-year-old US citizen was traveling through Chicago’s Midway airport when they were stopped by US border patrol agents. Though charged with no crime, the 25-year-old was subjected to a cheek swab to collect their DNA, which...
By Julie Métraux, Mother Jones | 09.23.2025