A man from Louisiana, Layne
Hardin, is attempting to sue a
fertility clinic after accusing
his ex-girlfriend of stealing
his stored gametes. Hardin
has alleged that former
partner Tobie Devall ‘bluffed’
her way into obtaining two
vials of his sperm, which she
was inseminated with.
As well as seeking damages
from the clinic – Texas
Andrology Services – and its
owner Obstetrical and
Gynecological Associate – for
allowing his gametes to be
used without his consent,
Hardin hopes that his case
will bring about a change in
the law that would prevent
this scenario from recurring.
Devall is also named in the
lawsuit.
A story published in Bio
News said Hardin and a
previous partner from over
10 years ago, Katherine
LeBlanc, had originally
decided to store some of his
sperm before he was due to
undergo a vasectomy. They
already had a son together
and though Hardin was due
to be sterilised after the
birth, they decided to store
eight samples of his gametes
at the Houston fertility clinic
before his operation should
they want to conceive
another child in the future.
The clinic had a contract in
place with Hardin and
LeBlanc, which in the event
of their separation instructed
that LeBlanc would be given
control of the gametes to use
at her discretion, the lawsuit
claims.
The couple ended their
relationship in 2006 and
Hardin began to date Tobie
Devall, the lawsuit continues.
During their time together,
the couple visited the same
clinic for advice on
conception, with Duvall
apparently aware that her
partner already had sperm
stored there. However, they
broke up in 2009.
The lawsuit alleges that
without authorisation to do
so, Duvall used Hardin’s
gametes to become
pregnant and gave birth to a
boy in 2010. His contract
with the fertility clinic had
made the sperm samples
available for use only by
LeBlanc; and the lawsuit
accordingly claims that his
contract with the clinic was
broken.
Hardin has been established
as the biological father of the
child. Accordingly, his lawyer
states that Devall could claim
for child support and
possibly part of Hardin’s
inheritance under the
current law. His lawyer, Cade
Benson, described the child
as ‘an innocent victim’ and
his situation as ‘a
controversial way to come
into being’. He went on to
say that the case is ‘like a
soap opera, but it’s real’.
Conversely, Devall’s lawyer
denies the claims and says
Hardin is a ‘money grubber’
who is pursuing the case for
cash from the clinic and
Duvall’s family, whom he
knows to be wealthy. He also
states that ‘a lot of the
allegations in the petition are
not factually accurate and
have no evidence to back
them up’.
In 2011, a man sued a US
fertility clinic for negligence
for allowing his ex-girlfriend
to gave birth to twins using
his sperm, believed to have
been obtained from a used
condom, without his
consent. The clinic denied
the allegations calling the
lawsuit ‘suspect’ and
‘disingenuous’. Trial is due to
begin in April.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/03/man-sues-clinic-for-impregnating-ex-girlfriend-with-his-sperm/

Oh sorry guy!

Your ex hacked into your sperm bank account!