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Wrongful Insemination Class Action Lawsuit Overview:
- Who: An Ontario Superior Court Justice has approved a $13.3 million class action settlement agreement between Dr. Norman Barwin and a Class of more than 200 former patients, children he helped conceive, and sperm donors.
- Why: Plaintiffs claimed Barwin intentionally used the wrong sperm when helping them conceive through artificial insemination.
- Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
An Ontario Superior Court judge has approved a $13.3 million class action settlement between Dr. Norman Barwin and citizens who accused him of artificially inseminating his patients with the wrong sperm.
Plaintiffs claimed Barwin intentionally used the wrong semen — including his own, on occasion — to artificially inseminate his patients, with at least 100 children being conceived, 17 of which Barwin is the biological father.
Wrongful Insemination Settlement Awards up to $50K to Class Members
A Class of more than 200 plaintiffs included Barwin’s former patients, the children they conceived, and donors who entrusted the disgraced doctor to store their sperm.
Each Class Member will be eligible to receive up to a maximum of $50,000, depending on the “category of harm” they individually fall into, reports CBC.
The highest paying category is for plaintiffs with DNA proof that they conceived a child — with Barwin’s assistance — that is not biologically linked to the man in the family.
Lead plaintiffs Dan and Davina Dixon claimed Barwin secretly used his own semen when helping the couple conceive, and is the biological father of their daughter, Rebecca, reports CBC.
Rebecca told CBC that one of the goals of the class action was to raise awareness.
“I certainly never expected to find as many people as we did in as many different situations as we did,” Rebecca told CBC. “Being able to put the legal process to rest — even if it doesn’t offer full emotional closure — it is a significant step in getting to a place of acceptance and having the harm that everyone experienced recognized.”
Barwin — who CBC reports has denied all the plaintiffs claims — is not admitting any wrongdoing as part of the class action settlement.
The disgraced doctor previously pleaded no contest to allegations brought forth by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, which revoked his medical license and issued him a fine of $10,730.
Are you a former patient of Dr. Barwin who is worried about wrongful artificial insemination? Let us know in the comments!
The plaintiffs are represented by Peter J.E. Cronyn, Frances Shapiro Munn, and Jessica Fullerton of Nelligan O’Brien Payne LLP.
The Wrongful Insemination Class Action Lawsuit is Dixon, et al. v. Dr. Norman Barwin, Case No. I6-70454CP, in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Canada.
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