November 7, 2013
Fla. Supreme Court Settles Lesbian Custody Battle
Jason St. Amand READ TIME: 1 MIN.
The Florida Supreme Court has ruled that a woman who donated an egg to her lesbian partner has parental rights to the child.
The court issued its ruling Thursday and ordered a lower court to determine custody and visitation rights.
The case involves two lesbians who began raising the child together. One donated an egg that was fertilized and implanted in the other. That woman gave birth in 2004.
But the Brevard County couple split up two years later, and the birth mother eventually left the country. The egg donor tracked her down in Australia, and a custody fight ensued.
