Embryos aren’t property, judge says, dismissing woman’s case against ex

A Virginia judge dismissed a lawsuit by Honeyhline Heidemann, a cancer survivor who sued her ex-husband, Jason Heidemann, for access to two frozen embryos created during their marriage. The judge ruled that human embryos are not divisible property under Virginia law.

The Heidemanns froze the embryos in 2015 before Honeyhline’s 2017 Stage 3 breast cancer diagnosis. After their 2018 divorce, their settlement listed the embryos as property, to be stored until a decision was made. In 2019, Honeyhline sought to use the embryos to have more children, but Jason refused, arguing it would violate his privacy. Honeyhline sued, suggesting she receive both embryos or that they be split equally.

The case gained attention in 2023 when a previous judge controversially cited a 19th-century Virginia law on enslaved people to allow the case to proceed. However, Judge Dontaè L. Bugg ruled against Honeyhline, rejecting the idea that embryos could be considered property or assigned monetary value. He also distanced himself from the prior judge’s reference to outdated slavery laws.

The ruling comes amid national debates over the legal status of embryos, particularly in light of recent abortion restrictions and fertility treatment regulations, such as Alabama’s Supreme Court ruling that frozen embryos are legally children.

For more information see Victoria Bisset “Embryos aren’t property, judge says, dismissing woman’s case against ex” The Washington Post, March 18, 2025. 

Special thanks to Deborah Matthews (Virginia Estate Planning Attorney) for bringing this article to my attention.