The Probate Lawyer Blog

The moment the lawsuit started, it was ugly.  Sofia Vergara and Nick Loeb have moved well past ugly into uncharted territory in their courtroom battle that addresses views about life itself.  

As we wrote after the case began, Vergara and Loeb's disagreement teaches an important lessons for anyone considering IVF or other mean of assisted reproductive technology.  But there's a greater lesson now.  When the courtroom is the backdrop for a relationship of love turned to hate, things can rapidly spiral out of control.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard provided a good example recently.  But even they -- despite dramatic accusations of spousal abuse, infidelity, blackmail, and more -- found a way to put their differences aside, reach a settlement, and end the fighting.  Vergara and Loeb don't appear to be heading down the same path.

Neither is willing to blink about what should happen to the two frozen embryos that they had created while together as a couple.  At the time, Vergara and Loeb tried to use In Vitro Fertilization to conceive a child.  They split after one failed attempt, before trying for a second time.  Two female embryos were left frozen.

At the start of the IVF process, Sofia Vergara and Nick Loeb both signed a form directive from the medical facility.  This form included an agreement with different options for what would happen to the embryos if not implanted.  They filled out the form and both signed it, indicating that if either of them died, the embryos would be thawed, which would destroy them.  The embryos would only be implanted or otherwise used if both Vergara and Loeb agreed to it.  If not, the embryos would remain frozen indefinitely.

What better way to start the new year than by counting down Trial & Heirs Top Ten Celebrity Legal Battles of 2015, complete with lessons? 

1.    Bill Cosby vs. many woman - Andrea Constad is one of dozens of women who have sued Cosby for defamation, accusing the comedian and actor of lying when he denied sexually abusing them years ago.  In Constad's civil lawsuit, Cosby's deposition was unsealed, revealing that he admitted giving women quaaludes and having intercourse with them.  He says both the drug use and sex were consensual.  Recently, a Pennsylvania district attorney brought charges against Cosby for sexual assault based on the 2004 encounter with Constad.

Lesson:  When victims of assault or other injuries wait too long, they lose the right to sue under the statute of limitations.  The specific length of time varies based on what state the events happened in and what type of claim is brought.  That's why most of the accusers are suing Cosby for defamation, rather than sexual assault.  Even criminal cases have a time limitation on when cases can be brought.  This new criminal case against Cosby was brought not long before the 12-year statute of limitations expired.  Anyone who feels they have a claim to sue, for assault or any other reason, should act promptly and not wait until it is too late.

It began with an anonymous court filing pitting “John Doe” against “Jane Doe.”  It didn’t take long for Jane and John to be identified publicly as Modern Family‘s Sofia Vergara and creator of the Onion Crunch, Nick Loeb.  Formerly engaged to be married, the ex-couple now is heading to court battling against each other over what could be a drawn-out debate involving the fundamental question:  When does life begin?  

Loeb’s attorney vows that he is committed to the battle, which may become “the first test case for Pro-Parenthood.”  Vergara seeks to defend her honor and wants nothing more to do with her ex.  Her lawyer said Loeb’s claims are “uncredible and hold no merit.”

What's at stake?  Control over two female frozen embryos, held in a Beverly Hills fertility center.  When Sofia Vergara and Nick Loeb were engaged, they decided to use in vitro fertilization and a gestational surrogate to have a baby.  Their first efforts failed when two prior embryos did not successfully implant in the woman they chose to carry the baby to term.  Vergara and Loeb tried a second time, again leading to the creation of two viable embryos.  Before the new embryos could be implanted in a different surrogate, the couple called off their engagement.