Las Vegas dad discovers IVF-conceived daughter isn't his after DNA test

After a DNA test revealed that a couple's 18-year-old daughter, who was conceived through IVF, was not their own, a Las Vegas family has been left in a state of disarray. The family discovered the child was not biologically related to either of the parents after conducting an Ancestry.com DNA test in 2023. The mother passed away in 2022, leaving the father and daughter to grieve the revelations on their own.

A negligence and malpractice lawsuit has been filed against the now-defunct Nevada Fertility Cares in the Clark County District Court, accusing Dr. Rachel McConnell of implanting the incorrect embryo into the mother nearly two decades ago.

"My client had more tears than I've ever seen someone shed, because what he thought was his daughter - isn't," said Attorney Robert Murdock, who is representing the father.

The couple had selected an egg donor from Arizona to combine with the father's sperm, as indicated by documents obtained by 8NewsNow. However, the DNA results indicated the embryo that had been implanted was actually from Las Vegas, as opposed to the one from Arizona that was selected. It's unclear what happened to the original embryo and whether or not it was implanted inside another woman, according to the complaint.

"Where did that embryo go? Was that implanted in someone else?" the attorney told the network. The father is now left wondering if he has a biological child out in the world that he didn't know about. He intends to officially adopt his teen and will have her birth certificate modified. 

"In this case, the biological child is not his, so as a result, he has to adopt her," said Murdock. "The real point of this is finding out what happened, why and hopefully making sure that this is the only mistake out there." A court date has not yet been set. The plaintiffs requested a jury trial to determine damages.