Egg Donor & Surrogacy Law Blog : Surrogacy and Egg Donation Lawyer & Attorney : Theresa Erickson : Erickson Law Firm : Practicing Reproductive and Gestational Carrier Law

Surrogacy and Multiple Embryos - How would one ever expect these two individuals to be in the same post?  But, here we have it.   Dr. Kamrava, the infamous doctor for the "Octomom," is now being accused of "gross negligence." 

A disciplinary complaint filed by the California Medical Board said that Dr Michael Kamrava acted “beyond reasonable judgment” by helping Nadya Suleman to conceive octuplets.

The complaint filed by Barbara Johnston, the executive director of the medical board, questioned Dr Kamrava’s treatment methods and criticised him for not referring Ms Suleman to a mental health professional after she repeatedly sought fertility treatment. At the time she conceived she was living in her mother's three-bedroomed home, subsisting on benefits.

The complaint states that Dr Kamrava implanted Ms Suleman with a far greater number of embryos than the American Society of Reproductive Medicine recommends and "beyond the reasonable judgment of any treating physician".

The ASRM expelled Dr Kamrava in September, but his medical licence was not affected, allowing him to continue treating patients.

The medical board has yet to set a date for hearing the complaint, which could result in Dr Kamrava’s license being revoked or suspended.

Hopefully, this issue will be resolved, but not before he will implant Tia Tequila!  Of course, we all know that she has not been a mother yet, so he would be the perfect doctor to use for her and her brother.  She claims that she wants to be a surrogate for her brother, but we also know that a woman should have given birth to at least one child and have custody of that child.  That case is just what this industry needs - more problems being created by those who do not seek the advice of competent practitioners.  Happy 2010!

Theresa Erickson
Attorney at Law
www.ericksonlaw.net
www.surrogacy-eggdonation.com

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Today's Friday Legal Update involves an interesting article regarding the Octo-Mom.  Not only does is discuss my opinion, as well as the opinion of theASRM featuring Sean Tipton, but it truly highlights the need for legal representation and the proper consents that need to be in line between yourself, the donor and your physician.  I think that the story of the Octo-Mom is teaching us again courtesy of RadarOnline....how ironic!  Let me know your thoughts.

"In an exclusive video with RadarOnline.com, Nadya Suleman revealed that she never asked her sperm donor for permission to use their frozen embryos-embryos that would eventually become her octuplets. While all of the Octomom's 14 children share the same bio-dad, Nadya exclusively told RadarOnline.com on Wednesday evening that she "begged" the man to help her conceive her first six kids. When it came to the octuplets, she said, "I went behind his back and used them all. He didn't want me to. I feel so much guilt for that.

"RadarOnline.com asked experts whether Suleman's decision was ethical-or legal. Sean B. Tipton, the director of public relations for the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, explained that men typically sign away most of their rights when they donate sperm. "They almost always relinquish all control over the process," he said. "It's very important that donors understand that they're relinquishing those rights."

Suleman's most recent pregnancy clearly violated other ASRM guidelines, though. The group holds that women under 35 should not be implanted with more than two embryos at once. Nadya was 33 when she was willingly implanted with eight embryos. "We've had guidelines on embryo transfer for years, and we keep ratcheting those down," Tipton said. "Multiple births are dangerous for the mother and the babies."

So could Suleman's donor take legal action against the Octomom? "It's a really sticky situation," attorney Theresa Erickson, founder of the California Family Planning Law Firm, told RadarOnline.com. "It's unlawful for anyone to use sperm, eggs, or embryos for any purpose beyond those on a consent form." If there was no written agreement between Suleman and the donor-or if the agreement included a timetable for the use of the sperm or restricted the freezing of embryos-he could have a case.

"If she asked for more [sperm] later, and another consent form wasn't signed, it's a gray area," Erickson added. "And if she lied to him or manipulated him, that might be a problem." The Octomom has said that her donor "would lose everything" if he came forward. Because of this, Erickson says that we'll likely never know whether she violated the law "unless the medical board investigates or she sues [the doctor] for malpractice. But I doubt that, because she got the eight babies she wanted." (Photo: WENN)"

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