## Facts

- Lauren Woodward and Warren Woodward married in 1993.
- After Warren was diagnosed with leukemia and before treatment, his sperm was withdrawn and preserved to address likely sterility.
- Warren died in 1993.
- In 1995, Lauren used the preserved sperm for artificial insemination and gave birth to twin daughters.
- Lauren sought Social Security mother’s and children’s survivor benefits, asserting the twins were Warren’s “children.”
- The Social Security Administration denied benefits on the ground that, under Massachusetts law, the twins were not shown to be able to inherit from Warren by intestate succession.
- Lauren later obtained a Massachusetts paternity judgment naming Warren as the twins’ father and amended birth certificates, but the agency continued to dispute entitlement.
- In federal litigation challenging the denial, a federal court certified to the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts a question concerning the twins’ intestate inheritance rights under Massachusetts law.

## Issues

1. Whether children conceived after a married man’s death using his stored sperm and born to his widow can qualify as the decedent’s “issue” for purposes of Massachusetts intestate succession.
2. If so, what conditions must be satisfied to protect the child’s interests, orderly estate administration, and the decedent’s reproductive autonomy.

## Decision

- The court answered the certified question conditionally: posthumously conceived genetic children may inherit as “issue,” but only in limited circumstances.
- The court required (1) proof of a genetic relationship to the decedent, (2) proof that the decedent affirmatively consented to posthumous conception and to supporting any resulting child, and (3) compliance with reasonable time and notice limitations.
- The court declined to apply the standard to the specific children or decide questions about the effect of the particular paternity judgment or timeliness, because those matters were outside the certified question as presented.

## Legal Principles

- Massachusetts intestacy law can recognize a posthumously conceived genetic child as “issue” if the proponent proves genetic parentage and the decedent’s affirmative consent to both posthumous conception and financial support obligations.
- Sperm preservation alone does not establish consent to posthumous parenthood or to the legal responsibilities associated with it.
- To preserve finality in estate administration, succession claims for posthumously conceived children are subject to reasonable temporal limits and notice requirements for interested parties.
- The governing standard reflects a balance among (1) protection of children’s interests, (2) predictability and finality in distributing estates, and (3) the decedent’s right to control reproduction, including the right not to procreate after death.

## Conclusion

Massachusetts permits intestate inheritance by posthumously conceived genetic children only when genetics are proven, the decedent affirmatively consented to posthumous conception and support, and succession claims satisfy reasonable time and notice constraints; the court articulated this rule without determining whether the particular children met it.


Woodward v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 435 Mass. 536, 760 N.E.2d 257 (2002)