High court: Contract voided surrogate mother's right to triplets
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- A surrogate mother who tried to keep triplets who weren't biologically hers doesn't have the same legal protections under Ohio law as a parent, a divided state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
In a 4-3 decision, the Ohio Supreme Court said Danielle Bimber, a Pennsylvania resident who gave birth to the triplet boys, must abide by a contract signed by her and the triplets' biological father, James Flynn of Kirtland.
The babies were conceived by fertilizing donor eggs with Flynn's sperm and placing them in Bimber's uterus.
In the majority opinion, Justice Paul Pfeifer wrote that a pair of Ohio laws that apply to parents were not applicable in this case because Bimber was not the children's biological mother.
That ruling was in line with one by the 9th District Court of Appeals, which disagreed with a lower court that said two Ohio laws made the surrogacy contract invalid.
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