More Canadians are moving to the U.S. Here's why
Recent data from the U.S. census revealed that more than 126,000 people moved from Canada to the U.S. in 2022. An expert said that one of the main reasons for this move is the cost of living.
A trial is underway in Virginia that will determine whether state law allows frozen embryos to be considered property that can be divided up and assigned a monetary value.
Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Dontae Bugg heard arguments Thursday from a divorced couple who disagree over the ex-wife's desire to use two embryos that they created when they were married.
Honeyhline Heidemann says the embryos are her last chance to conceive a biological child after a cancer treatment left her infertile. Jason Heidemann, says he does not want to be forced to become a biological father to another child.
The case attracted national attention last year when a different judge, Richard Gardiner, ruled that embryos could be considered “goods or chattel” that could be divided under state law, and his analysis relied in part on a 19th-century law governing the treatment of slaves.
Gardiner is no longer assigned to the case, for reasons unrelated to his citation of slavery as a precedent.
The case also comes as reproductive rights activists have expressed alarm over a ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court that found embryos could be considered children under that state's law.
There is little case law in Virginia governing the treatment of embryos.
Honeyhline Heidemann's suit was brought under a partition statute that governs the division of property between interested parties.
Jason Heidemann's lawyer, Carrie Patterson, argued that there is no precedent for it because that law is not designed to deal with embryos. Its primary purpose, she said, is to govern the division of real estate.
Case law that exists nationally regarding embryos recognizes that they are not mere property, she said, but rather property with special characteristics that require courts to balance competing interests.
One of the things a judge must consider when evaluating such cases is a person's “right to procreational autonomy.” In this case, Patterson said, her client has a strong interest in avoiding procreating against his will.
Honeyhline's Heidemann's attorney, Jason Zellman, argued that the partition statute applies if the embryos are classified as property, and if they can be assigned a monetary value.
Documents that both Heidemanns signed with the IVF provider specifically refer to the embryos as property, he said, and thus their value can be assessed as the cost incurred in their creation.
Because there are two embryos, he added, the judge has an easy means of dividing up the property: Award one embryo to each party.
Bugg, who said he will issue a ruling at a later date, expressed misgivings about the notion of assigning a monetary value to the embryos.
Zellman acknowledged that the case presents some novel issues, but he also suggested to the judge that it doesn't need to “blaze the headlines” or establish any sweeping precedent. He said the unique facts of the Heidemanns' case — including language in their divorce settlement requiring the embryos to remain in storage “pending a court order” — will distinguish it from future disputes.
The judge readily accepted that notion, saying, “I don't think anything I do in this case applies to anyone but the Heidemanns.”
Recent data from the U.S. census revealed that more than 126,000 people moved from Canada to the U.S. in 2022. An expert said that one of the main reasons for this move is the cost of living.
A federal gun case against U.S. President Joe Biden's son Hunter opened Monday with jury selection, following the collapse of a plea deal that would have avoided the spectacle of a trial so close the 2024 election. First lady Jill Biden was seated in the front row of the courtroom, in a show of support for her son.
For two years doctors told her she was an alcoholic. Then they realized her gut was making alcohol from carbohydrates, a rare condition called auto-brewery syndrome.
Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda apologized Monday for massive cheating on certification tests for seven vehicle models as the automaker suspended production of three of them.
A search effort has been launched for a trio of mountain climbers who were reported overdue after not returning from their excursion near Squamish, B.C.
Katy Perry has reimagined a recent commencement speech by Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker that was criticized as homophobic and sexist.
Turi King takes pride in her work solving ancient and modern-day DNA puzzles – including a centuries-old mystery involving an infamous British king.
Known as “la Doctora” for her glittering academic credentials, Claudia Sheinbaum is a physicist with a doctorate in energy engineering and a former major-city mayor.
A brief break during Wednesday's city council meeting in Saskatoon nearly cost the city dearly.
Car 14 is a luxury passenger car that once made regular runs from London to Port Stanley starting in 1917.
A hefty donation by a renowned local activist to the University of Winnipeg has created what is believed to be the most comprehensive two-spirit archives in all of Canada.
Leanne Van Bergen discovered a skulk of 10 baby foxes, and two mothers, had made themselves at home on her property in Beausejour.
An 81-year-old Waterloo, Ont. woman thought she’d never ride a horse again after a brain bleed led to severe physical complications.
A CP24 camera caught the moment a driver frantically got out of her car as it was being dragged by a truck on Avenue Road Wednesday afternoon.
Prince Edward Island is celebrating its first-ever International Day of Potato on Thursday.
The president of Covered Bridge Chips in New Brunswick is hoping to have his factory rebuilt for late 2025 following a devastating fire last year.
Students and staff at Winnipeg’s Westwood Collegiate had a unique problem to solve this month; how do you lead ducks to water from the school’s courtyard when 12 of them can’t fly yet?
Debby Lorinczy remembers her father as an amazing person and as a man who also made an amazing discovery.