Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Same-Sex Family Law
Same-sex couples might decide to use assisted reproductive technology to have children. Florida law is unfortunately not clear on the rights of both parents in this situation, even when the parents are married. A recent appellate case certifies conflict with another case concerning the legal status of those who use artificial insemination or similar methods to bear children: Rivera v. Salas, 2D2022-4066 (Fla. 2d DCA July 19, 2024).
Two women who were in a relationship used an at-home insemination kit to impregnate themselves with sperm donated by a male. After learning the insemination worked, the women got married and remained married at the time of the child’s birth. When the child was a little more than one year old, the women separated, and the male who donated his sperm filed a paternity action. The trial court dismissed the petition, holding that because the male donated his sperm, he relinquished his parental rights. The male appealed.
The appellate court noted “The instant case is primarily concerned with section 742.14, which provides, in pertinent part: ‘The donor of any egg, sperm, or preembryo, other than the commissioning couple [2] or a father who has executed a preplanned adoption agreement under s. 63.213, shall relinquish all maternal or paternal rights and obligations with respect to the donation or the resulting children.’ The statute's meaning is clear on its face. Donors of sperm, eggs, or preembryos have no standing to assert parental rights with respect to children conceived and born as a result of their donation. There are two exceptions: (1) members of a commissioning couple and (2) fathers who have executed a preplanned adoption agreement. Thus, donors in either of these exception categories are not subject to the mandatory relinquishment of their parental rights.”
The court then goes through the history of case law on this issue before affirming the trial court’s decision to dismiss the male’s petition, but certifying a conflict with the case Enriquez v. Velazquez, 350 So. 3d 147 (Fla. 5th DCA 2022) “insofar as it holds that ‘section 742.14 applies to paternity actions only when the child was born as a result of assisted reproductive technology.’”
Schedule your meeting with a Miami family law attorney to understand how the law may apply to the facts of your case.