Abstract

The single-parent family is a family entity legally protected by article 226, § 4° of the Federal Constitution of Brazil. However, there are still doubts about the feasibility of a single-parent family, constituted by means of assisted human reproduction techniques, the so-called “independent production” - a Brazilian idiomatic expression. From this perspective, one could wonder: would the choice to individually perform paternity or maternity be legitimate? In order to answer that question, the present work aims to analyze the legitimacy of a particular project of parenting held by a single person, resorting to the aid of modern medically assisted procreation techniques. For this purpose, we applied the analytic-deductive method, through a bibliographical review, with the intention of searching the doctrinal formulations on the subject, analyzing them in accordance to a bioethical-civil-constitutional methodology. Thus, it was observed that, from the point of view of family planning and its legal limitations, there is no way to legally restrain the implementation of such parental projects. After all, the ideal of family foreseen by the current Brazilian order preserves affection and care in family relations, above any predetermined pattern of family constitution.

Keywords
“Independent production”; single parent family; human assisted reproduction; procreative autonomy; family planning