A San Francisco woman Wednesday was denied custody of embryos she created with her estranged husband in a court ruling that upheld the validity of a consent form she signed specifying they would be destroyed in the event of a divorce.
Advertisement
Stephen Findley, the ex-husband of Mimi Lee, leaves the San Francisco Superior Court, in San Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, July 14, 2015. According to court documents, the couple gave a consent agreement before they underwent fertility treatments in which they both said they would like the embryos discarded if they were divorced.
Lee’s attorneys said no California court had previously ruled in such a case.
Magnus said the courts have been reluctant to enforce parenthood on someone who does not want to be a parent and have put great weight on contractual agreements made in advance.
Massullo said California law is clear that couples must decide what to do with embryos they create in case of separation or divorce.
“Given Lee’s education, profession and intelligence, the court finds that her testimony that she did not intend to enter into a binding agreement was not credible”, Massullo wrote. The judge said while lee has the right to procreate, she can’t force her ex to have a child with her. Lee is a breast cancer survivor who is now infertile and said she wanted to still have children.
Findley, however refused his permission for her to use the embryos, citing his fear that she would use them for financial advantage against him.
Findley, a wealthy investment executive, wants the embryos destroyed under agreements the couple signed in 2010 at UC San Francisco’s fertility center, but Lee, a Juilliard-trained pianist and Harvard-educated doctor, is pushing to gain control of them.
“Decisions about family and children often are hard, and can be wrenching when they become disputes”, the judge wrote.
In her decision, the judge said Findley “should be free from court-compelled fatherhood and the attendant uncertainties it would bring”. Dr. Carl Herbert from San Francisco’s Pacific Fertility Center says it is the right decision. As she teared up, Lee said, “I stay focused on my babies and knowing that I’m their mom”.
Findley testified that he would like to have children someday, but not with Lee.
She declined to rule on whether Lee had a constitutional right to procreate, but said Lee clearly didn’t have a right to do so with Findley.
Advertisement
Lee’s lawyers released a statement saying she is “disappointed” in the ruling and “evaluating her legal options”.
