In re M.F.
Indiana Court of Appeals
938 N.E.2d 1256 (2010)
- Written by Rose VanHofwegen, JD
Facts
J.F. (plaintiff) was in a long-term lesbian relationship and wanted to have a child. Her friend W.M. (defendant) agreed to provide sperm. The two signed a six-page agreement drafted by J.F.’s attorney before the child, M.F., was born. The agreement provided that W.M. waived all his parental rights, J.F. waived any right to child support and financial assistance, and that neither would ever pursue legal action to establish paternity. Seven years later, W.M. again provided sperm, and J.F. had a second child, C.F. When the children were five and 12 years old, J.F.’s relationship with her partner ended. J.F. applied for welfare benefits, and the county prosecutor filed a paternity suit on her behalf to obtain child support from W.M. The trial court found the donor agreement a valid contract that applied to both children and denied the petition to establish paternity. J.F. appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Friedlander, J.)
Dissent (Crone, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 778,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,200 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
