Irreparable Harm - Abridged

Bright but inexperienced attorney Mitchell Taylor is torn between warring personal and professional interests. Can he help his Client—a young surrogate mother—and save the child she carries without sealing the fate of others?

When Dr. Nathan Brown and his wife, Cameron, undergo a controversial method of in vitro fertilization, some of their cloned embryos are used to achieve a pregnancy in surrogate Maryna Sareth while the others are cryogenically preserved. Dr. Brown's premature death, however, and mounting evidence that the baby has Down's Syndrome unleash a legal, ethical, and moral firestorm.

Dr. Brown's dying wish is that the remaining embryos be used for stem cell research. His wife wants to force the abortion of the baby Maryna carries in hopes that one of the remaining embryos can produce a "healthy" child. Meanwhile, Mitchell wrestles with an agonizing ethical dilemma: Can he protect the embryos, which requires that a federal legislative ban on cloning be overturned, while at the same time helping the beautiful young surrogate save the child she carries—possible only if the ban is upheld?

With time running out, Mitchell and Maryna must run the gauntlet of bioethical nightmares, corporate treachery, and life-threatening confrontations if they are to save the unborn and avoid irreparable harm.