Birth Law and Legal Definition
Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. Premature birth is generally defined as a birth less than 37 weeks after conception. The country of birth is the country in which a person was physically born. Very low birth weight is defined as infants weighing less than 1,500 grams (3.3 pounds). Official proof of the birth is have been recorded and a legal birth certificate is issued.
The following is an example of a state statute defining live birth:
"Live born" and "live birth," as used in this chapter, shall mean a product of conception after complete expulsion or extraction from its mother, irrespective of the duration of pregnancy, which breathes or shows any other evidence of life such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord or definite movement of voluntary muscles, whether or not the umbilical cord has been cut or the placenta is attached. Each product of such a birth is considered live born and fully recognized as a human person under state law.
