Park v. Chessin (1977)

The New York Appellate Court ruled on 11 December 1977 in favor of Steven and Hetty Park and against Herbert Chessin for the wrongful life [5] of the Parks' child. In a wrongful life [5] case, a disabled or sometimes deceased child brings suit against a physician for failing to inform its parents of possible genetic defects, thereby causing harm to the child when born. Park v. Chessin [4] was the first US case to rule that medical personnel could be legally responsible for wrongful life [5]. Further cases such as the 1979 case Berman v. Allan [6] and the 1982 case Turpin v. Sortini [7] similarly dealt with the legal challenges inherent in wrongful life [5] suits.