Summarize and humanize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in EnglishLegal experts have claimed the biological parents of a baby born into the wrong family will have no legal rights to the child – while the IVF clinic at fault is likely to avoid regulatory penalty. The unnamed woman was mistakenly implanted with an embryo belonging to another couple following a ‘human error’ at a Monash IVF clinic in Brisbane. While the issue of parentage under an accidental IVF implantation is untested in Australia, a number of family law experts have suggested the rights of biological parents are generally subsidiary to those of birth parents in Queensland.It is understood the law is formulated this way to protect birth parents from challenges raised by egg or sperm donors during the IVF process. Michael Gorton AM was recently commissioned to investigate Queensland’s fertility regulations by the health ombudsman.He told the Sydney Morning Herald a case like this had not occurred in Australia in more than three decades of IVF procedures. ‘I am aware of reports of two cases in America, so it is incredibly rare,’ he said. ‘The Family Court would have jurisdiction over parenthood, and the court would start with the presumption that the birth mother is the birth mother. It would be a landmark [case] because they would have to consider these particularly unique circumstances where the child is biologically the child of other people.’ A horror mix-up at a Brisbane IVF clinic led to a woman giving birth to another’s baby (stock) Monash IVF has since stated the mix-up was the result of ‘human error’ and has offered support to both affected familiesMr Gorton said Monash IVF will not be subjected to any punishment by the state’s health regulator given it was only granted regulatory oversight subsequent to the mother being implanted. In September, Queensland Health was given central regulatory authority to crack down on assisted reproductive technology (ART) providers. The law was passed after the state’s Office of the Health Ombudsman concluded Queensland had lower levels of ART regulation than other jurisdictions. It was not given retrospective enforcement powers, meaning the regulator will be limited to ensuring Monash IVF has appropriate procedures in place to meet its ongoing responsibilities as an ART provider. ‘In Victoria, you can take away their licence, and in NSW and most of the other states, there could be repercussions,’ Mr Gorton said. ‘But I think the greatest motivation here will be the legal case that comes out of it because it will be squillions.’Australia’s complex family law system leaves the responsibility of fertility regulation up to the states, meaning local regulations often diverge. The Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand called for Australia’s fertility regulations to be unified after a 2023 review identified more than 40 pieces of legislation affecting assisted reproductive technology (ART) and IVF in the country. Michael Gorton (pictured) told the Sydney Morning Herald the family court would begin from the presumption that ‘the birth mother is the birth mother’Monash IVF only became aware of the mix-up in February after the birth parents requested to transfer their remaining embryos to another provider. During the process, operators at the Brisbane clinic identified one more embryo than expected before discovering the birth mother had been implanted with an embryo belonging to another couple. ‘An embryo from a different patient had previously been incorrectly thawed and transferred to the birth parents, which resulted in the birth of a child,’ Monash IVF said in a statement released on Thursday. The clinic has been tight-lipped on the circumstances surrounding the mix-up. ‘While we understand the public interest in this matter, the privacy of the families involved – including the child – has been our priority,’ a spokesperson said. ‘On behalf of Monash IVF, I want to say how truly sorry I am for what has happened,’ chief executive Michael Knaap said in a statement to Daily Mail Australia.’All of us at Monash IVF are devastated and we apologise to everyone involved. We will continue to support the patients through this extremely distressing time.’He added that the clinic has since undertaken additional audits and was confident the mix-up was an isolated incident.’We are reinforcing all our safeguards across our clinics – we also commissioned an independent investigation and are committed to implementing its recommendations in full,’ Mr Knaap said. Operators at Monash IVF only discovered the mix-up after finding the birth couple had one more embryo than expected in storage (stock image)While a case like this has not yet been heard in an Australian court, a similar mix-up in the US recently made headlines. On December 29, 2023 white US woman Krystena Murray gave birth to an African-American child belonging to another family following a bungled implantation.The boy was five months old when Ms Murray voluntarily gave up custody of the child two months after his biological parents sued her for custody.In February, 2025, she filed a lawsuit against Coastal Fertility Specialists. According to the lawsuit, Ms Murray only gave up custody after her lawyers informed her she would ultimately lose the custody battle, CBS News reported. Coastal Fertility Specialists told the outlet it was an ‘isolated event’ and that additional safeguards have since been implemented to prevent a repeat.
Keep Reading
