Sofia Vergara is reportedly heading into an ugly legal battle with her ex-fiance Nick Loeb.
Sofia Vergara is reportedly heading into an ugly legal battle with her ex-fiance Nick Loeb.
As reported by In Touch Weekly, as Vergara's wedding with Joe Manganiello approaches, she is being sued by Loeb over two frozen embryos that were created using Loeb's sperm and Vergara's eggs when the two were still together. According to court papers filed anonymously on April 1 (defendant "Jane Doe" is described as "a popular television star"), she allegedly wants them destroyed, while Loeb wants them to be preserved.
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"You're talking about, essentially, an out-of-body baby, potentially," legal analyst Robin Sax told ET. "Where this case is going to rise and fall is in the documents from the IVF folks, because what happens is that there are all kinds of contracts that are supposed to address all these potential situations. [These particular documents] only address what would happen in death. They did not address what would happen in divorce or separation beforehand."
"We just wanted to plan ahead," Vergara told Good Morning America in 2013 when the embryos were made. "My boyfriend Nick -- he's three years younger than me and he's never had a son, so I wanted to make sure I already froze some eggs. I wanted to take advantage of science. Why not?"
The embryos were frozen six months prior to their split in 2014. According to the lawsuit, the then-couple were unsuccessful twice at implanting an embryo in a surrogate.
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"There's definitely a long shelf life when you talk about cryopreservation of an embryo," Dr. Jennifer Ashton tells ET. "The latest data is 10-20 years."
Following her split from Loeb, Vergara began dating Manganiello. In January, she showed off her engagement ring on the SAG Awards red carpet. They are rumored to be planning a September wedding.
According to Sax, Vergara could have an advantage in the eyes of the law.
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"The court is likely to say no one can be forced to procreate if they didn't want to," Sax said. "If they can't come up with a unified decision, it is likely that that embryo will be destroyed."
