Category: Child Support

Sperm Donors Could Be Forced to Pay Child Support

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On behalf of Ronald H. Kauffman, P.A. posted in Child Support on Thursday, January 10, 2013.

child custody can be heavily litigated despite guidelines, especially for sperm donors who never intended to be parents.

Florida protects surrogacy, and has comprehensive laws protecting the baby, intended parents, donors and surrogates. For example, Florida allows a commissioning couple to enter gestational surrogacy contracts in which a commissioning couple reimburses a surrogate for reasonable expenses, and on the child’s birth, the surrogate relinquishes her parental rights. Gestational surrogacy contracts are reviewed by courts to confirm that they are in accordance with Florida law, and for a birth certificate to be issued.

However, serious problems can arise if this statute is not followed correctly. ABC News reports on Topeka, Kansas resident and sperm donor, William Marotta, who is currently facing a child support petition by the Kansas Department of Children and Families:

The state of Kansas is seeking child support from a man who says he signed away all parental rights when he donated sperm to a lesbian couple.

. . .

Marotta, 46, met Angela Bauer and Jennifer Schreiner in 2009 when he responded to a Craigslist ad from a lesbian couple in Topeka, Kan., who were offering $50 per sperm donation, according to legal documents.

. . .

All three signed a sperm donor contract that stated that he would have no paternal rights and would be in no way responsible for any child that resulted from the donation.

. . .

“Three years forward, the couple sought state assistance for the child and the Kansas Department of Children and Families sought out of them the name of the father and said they would not provide assistance unless they provide the name,” Swinnen said.

. . .

The filing said that the state had spent $189 on the baby from July 2012 to September 2012 and nearly $6,000 in medical assistance, which Marotta had a duty to pay.

. . .

“The state does not recognize the contract. We’ll see if the courts in Kansas do,” Swinnen said. “We have filed a motion to dismiss. We hope to prevail, but this is the first round.”

A hearing on Marotta’s motion to dismiss the state’s petition is supposed to be heard this month.

Katie Homes & Tom Cruise: Can Court’s Choose a Child’s Religion?

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On behalf of Ronald H. Kauffman, P.A. posted in Child Support on Wednesday, July 18, 2012.

Child custody cases always raise interesting issues. One of the questions in the Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise divorce is what religion will the child be raised in after the divorce. Tom Cruise is a Scientologist, and Katie Holmes is reportedly a Catholic. TomKat are not alone, about 27% of Americans were in interfaith marriages according to the Religious Landscape Survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

Happily for them – but not so much for the media – Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise have reached a settlement in their divorce. But, when divorcing parents can’t agree about religion, can it be a factor in a custody case?

Whenever a court decides custody, the sine qua non is the best interests of the child. But, deciding the religious upbringing of a child puts the court in a tough position. There is nothing in our custody statute allowing a court to consider religion as a factor in custody, and a court’s choosing one parent’s religious beliefs over another’s, probably violates the Constitution. So, unless there is actual harm being done to the child by the religious upbringing, it would seem that deciding the child’s faith is out of bounds for a judge.

Ironically, that may not be the rule all over Florida. Different appellate courts in Florida have slightly different takes on the issue, and the question of whether a trial court can consider a parent’s religious beliefs as a factor in determining custody has been allowed. For this reason, it is best to speak to an attorney experienced in child custody matters.