FEMINISM, LAW, AND BIOETHICS

Feminist legal theory provides a healthy skepticism toward legal doctr ine and insists that we reexamine even formally gender-neutral rules t o uncover problematic assumptions behind them. The article first outli nes feminist legal theory from the perspectives of liberal, cultural, and radical feminism. Examples of how each theory influences legal pra ctice, case law, and legislation are highlighted. Each perspective is then applied to a contemporary bioethical issue, egg donation. Followi ng a brief discussion of the common themes shared by feminist jurispru dence, the article incorporates a narrative reflecting on the integrat ion of the common feminist themes in the context of the passage of the Maryland Health Care Decisions Act. The article concludes that gender does matter and that an understanding of feminist legal theory and pr actice will enrich the analysis of contemporary bioethical issues.