A Florida mother who gave birth last month is now suing an IVF clinic because the baby she gave birth to was “not genetically related” to either parent, according to the lawsuit.
Orlando Fertility Center is named as a defendant in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that the anonymous couple, identified in the documents only as John Doe and Jane Doe, began using the center’s services in March 2025.
The woman implanted an embryo that she believed contained the plaintiff’s DNA and successfully carried the pregnancy to term.
In early December, the woman gave birth to a “beautiful, healthy baby girl,” according to the lawsuit. But the baby identified in court documents as a “baby doe” appears to be of a different race, the lawsuit said.
“While Jane Doe and Jane Doe are both white, Little Jane Doe exhibits the appearance of a non-white child,” the lawsuit states.
A woman is suing an IVF clinic in Florida after she says she received the wrong embryo and gave birth to a child who was not genetically related to her or her partner (Getty/iStock)
The alleged discrepancy led the couple to “subject to genetic testing on the percentage of children they would have,” the lawsuit states. “Testing confirmed that the doe was not genetically related to any of the plaintiffs,” it continued.
“The couple is equally concerned that there is an apparent possibility that one or more of their embryos may have been implanted by someone else who … is currently raising one or more of their children,” the lawsuit adds.
The couple had developed a “strong emotional bond” with their child “even though they knew Doe was not their genetic match,” the lawsuit said. They went on to say they were happy to keep the little girl but understood she should be “legally” and “morally” united with her biological parents.
“[The couple] willingly placed her in their care; however, for the benefit of Doe and her biological parents, they recognized that as long as Doe was healthy, capable, and willing to receive her, they should be legally and morally reunited with her biological parents,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit continues that the couple “have an equally compelling right to be fully informed about the disposition of their embryos and to be free from the increasing mental anguish of not knowing whether one or more of their children is in the care of someone else.”
independent Lawyers for the couple have been asked for comment.
The couple asked the clinic for help identifying their daughter’s biological family but never heard back, News 6 Orlando reported.
independent Orlando Fertility Center has been contacted for comment. It was unclear which law firm represented the center or the doctors named in the lawsuit.
The filing asks the court for emergency relief to force the clinic to disclose details of the complaints to all patients so they can determine whether the girl is their biological child and whether they received the couple’s embryos.
The lawsuit also requires the clinic to pay for genetic testing of all involved patients and their children over the past five years while the couple’s embryos were in their custody. Finally, the lawsuit requires the clinic to disclose whether there are any discrepancies in the paternity of all patients’ children born as a result of embryo implantation within the past five years.