In re C.K.G.
Supreme Court of Tennessee
173 S.W.3d 714 (Tenn. 2005)
Unmarried partners Charles G. (defendant) and Cindy C. (plaintiff) used in vitro fertilization with an anonymous donor's eggs and Charles's sperm, with Cindy signing an agreement formalizing her intent to be the resulting children's mother; Cindy gave birth to triplets after one embryo split. After the couple's relationship deteriorated, Cindy petitioned to establish her legal maternity and obtain custody and support; Charles argued that, lacking any genetic connection to the children, Cindy could not be their legal mother. The juvenile court found Cindy had standing as mother, awarded joint custody, and ordered continued child support, and the court of appeals affirmed.
Whether, when an unmarried couple used assisted reproduction involving third-party egg donation, the gestational mother is the legal mother if (1) it was her intent to raise the child, and (2) there is no dispute about parental status between the gestational mother and the genetic mother.