Sofia Vergara is celebrating a legal victory after a Louisiana judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by her former fiance, Nick Loeb, seeking custody of the frozen embryos they conceived before splitting up.
As TMZ reports, the judge threw out Loeb’s suit, declaring that the court had no jurisdiction because the embryos were conceived in California, and neither Loeb nor Vergara could demonstrate any permanent ties to Louisiana.
READ MORE: Nick Loeb speaks out about Sofia Vergara embryo battle
Loeb’s lawyer contended that jurisdiction should be granted, since Vergara filmed Hot Pursuit in New Orleans during 2014, and Loeb claimed the two had dated and planned a life together while in Louisiana. The judge, however, did not find that to be sufficient evidence of jurisdiction, and in his motion to dismiss case described the frozen embryos as “citizens of California.”
Loeb has been trying — so far unsuccessfully — to be awarded full custody of the embryos in order to bring them to term, and filed his suit in Louisiana because of the state’s favourable laws relating to the rights of unborn children. Vergara, however, filed a motion in February to block Loeb from being awarded the ex-couple’s embryos.
As People reports, her suit alleges that she and Loeb entered into a written contract that states “neither party may use the pre-embryos created from the IVF procedure without the ‘explicit written consent’ of the other party.”
READ MORE: Judge allows Sofia Vergara’s ex to file new lawsuit in embryo custody battle
According to TMZ, it’s unclear at this time whether Loeb will attempt to refile his lawsuit.
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