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Fertility clinic lawsuit to resume in 2019 with new judge

Posted at 7:59 AM, Dec 31, 2018
and last updated 2018-12-31 08:00:02-05

CLEVELAND (AP) — The case against an Ohio fertility clinic that had a storage tank malfunction that destroyed over 4,000 eggs and embryos will resume in January.

Cleveland.com reports Ashley Kilbane will preside over the case after she's sworn in on the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court. Kilbane will replace retiring Judge Stuart Friedman.

The case includes 70 lawsuits against a clinic run by University Hospitals in suburban Cleveland. Officials say the patients' eggs and embryos were ruined after a storage tank's temperature fluctuated in early March.

Plaintiffs Rick and Wendy Penniman are involved in another case in appellate court where they're seeking a legal declaration that their lost embryos were people and should have been treated like patients. Friedman had previously tossed the couple's case.