Embryo Mix-Up Leads to Complex Custody Agreement in Florida

The biological parents of a baby girl, born due to an embryo mix-up in Florida, are managing an incredibly difficult situation, according to their attorney, Rob Marcereau. After reaching an agreement that permits the birth parents to maintain custody, the biological parents are dealing with deep emotional distress.

Marcereau explained that the past months have been devastating for his clients, who are aware of the birth couple’s suffering as well. They made the heart-wrenching decision not to pursue custody. The baby, Shea, was born in December to Tiffany Score and Steven Mills. This couple underwent in vitro fertilization at the Fertility Center of Orlando in Longwood, Florida.

Score and Mills decided to sue the clinic after discovering through testing that Shea wasn’t biologically related to them. Their attorney announced in April that the baby’s biological parents, referred to in court documents as Patient 004, had been identified but kept anonymous. The custody agreement allows them to continue being involved in Shea’s life. According to Marcereau, they deeply care for Shea and would have preferred to raise her, but the legal battle seemed insurmountable and not in Shea’s best interest.

Multiple meetings between both sets of parents were described as emotional, involving many tears and embraces. Score and Mills, who are white, sought genetic testing because Shea appeared distinctly non-Caucasian. The results confirmed Shea is entirely South Asian, stated their attorney, Mara Hatfield.

Hatfield also noted that Score and Mills are committed to fostering a lasting bond with Shea’s biological parents. The clinic responsible, now closed, did not comment on the custody agreement, which underscores concerns about the oversight of IVF procedures in the U.S.

Score and Mills have filed a lawsuit against both the fertility center and Dr. Milton McNichol, the lead reproductive endocrinologist. The defendants have not challenged that Shea should genetically belong to Score and Mills, as per court documents. Dr. McNichol also did not comment on the situation.

Shea’s biological parents plan to sue the clinic and the doctor. Marcereau emphasized how unfairly difficult the decision was for them to relinquish custody, calling the situation inexcusable.