Mother's warning over baby custody dispute
Mother's warning over baby custody dispute
Earlier this year a judge ruled that a baby girl should no longer live with her biological mother and awarded custody to her biological father and his male partner.
The High Court judgement followed a legal dispute over the nature of the parents' agreement when the child was conceived.
The father said that the woman had agreed to be the gay couple's surrogate. The mother said that the father had agreed to be a sperm donor.
Speaking exclusively to Victoria Derbyshire reporter Sanchia Berg, in her first broadcast interview, the woman says that eight months since losing custody of her daughter she is still very upset, and warns other people considering having a child in similar circumstances to think very carefully about what they are doing.
The Family Court judge, Ms Justice Russell said it was in the "best interests and welfare" of the young girl throughout her childhood to live with her father and his partner and to spend some time with her mother. We're not revealing her name or face, and her words are spoken by an actress, in order to protect her daughter's identity.
We invited the biological father of the child and his partner to be interviewed on this programme. They declined, but gave us this statement: "There are no winners in this case, only what is best for our daughter in the circumstances. We are saddened that our daughter's mother feels the need to tell our story so publicly, and would urge anyone watching this to also read Ms Justice Russell's judgment, and to be aware that the Court of Appeal refused permission to appeal. We have and will always be driven by our strong desire to protect our daughter from any harm, be it now or in the future, from any negative or speculative stories that may upset her in future years. We ask that our privacy as a family is respected."
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