Gay couple who wanted sons sues fertility clinic over birth of daughter.

A gay couple in California is suing a fertility clinic after a female embryo was implanted in a surrogate resulting in the birth of a daughter. The couple claim that they had specified that they wanted to have a son and that Dr Bradford A Kolb of HRC Fertility in Pasadena had agreed to their request.

Albert and Anthony Saniger, who married in 2013, claim that they had always planned to have two sons, and had even gone as far as choosing their future children’s names and opening Gmail accounts for their as-yet-unborn and unconceived sons in those names. 

The lawsuit, which has been filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges breach of contract, negligence, medical malpractice and breached on the California’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act and the Unfair Competition Law.

The suit says that the Sanigers had repeatedly specified that only male embryos should be implanted in their surrogate and claim that the clinic told them that they would be able to select the exact male-identified embryos for transfer. However, the couple is claiming that HRC Fertility and Dr Kolb “negligently, recklessly, and/or intentionally transferred a female embryo to the Sanigers’ gestational carrier.” 

HRC Fertility’s website says that they are “dedicated to helping the gay and lesbian community achieve their dreams of parenthood.” The website also advertises the genetic screening of embryos so that potential parents can specify the sex of their future offspring.

Prior to their surrogate becoming pregnant with their daughter, the couple had undergone two failed embryo transfers, bringing their total costs to around $300,000. The Sanigers’ unwanted daughter was born in 2021, resulting in what the suit calls a “staggering” financial impact as, once they have their sons, they will have to raise three children instead of two.

The clinic has not responded to a CBS News request for comment.

About the author

Newsdesk