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| Gay couple win custody battle against Thai surrogate mother | Gay couple win custody battle against Thai surrogate mother |
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| A court in Thailand has awarded custody of a baby to a same-sex American-Spanish couple after a high-profile court battle with a Thai surrogate mother who decided she wanted to keep the baby when she found out they were gay. | |
| The case was complicated by the fact that Thai law does not recognise same-sex marriages and also by a new law that bans commercial surrogacy, which took effect after baby Carmen’s birth. | The case was complicated by the fact that Thai law does not recognise same-sex marriages and also by a new law that bans commercial surrogacy, which took effect after baby Carmen’s birth. |
| The couple, Gordon Lake and Manuel Santos, both 41, have been in Thailand since launching their legal battle after Carmen was born in January 2015. | The couple, Gordon Lake and Manuel Santos, both 41, have been in Thailand since launching their legal battle after Carmen was born in January 2015. |
| Lake is the biological father of Carmen, who is now 15 months old, while the egg came from an anonymous donor. | Lake is the biological father of Carmen, who is now 15 months old, while the egg came from an anonymous donor. |
| When Carmen was born, the surrogate, Patidta Kusolsang, handed over the baby to Lake and Santos. But they say Patidta then changed her mind and refused to sign the documents to allow Carmen to get a passport so they could leave Thailand. | When Carmen was born, the surrogate, Patidta Kusolsang, handed over the baby to Lake and Santos. But they say Patidta then changed her mind and refused to sign the documents to allow Carmen to get a passport so they could leave Thailand. |
| Lake and Santos were told she had thought they were an “ordinary family and that she worried for Carmen’s upbringing”, according to a message Lake posted on a crowdfunding site that raised $36,000 (£25,000) to help cover the costs of the trial and staying in Thailand. | Lake and Santos were told she had thought they were an “ordinary family and that she worried for Carmen’s upbringing”, according to a message Lake posted on a crowdfunding site that raised $36,000 (£25,000) to help cover the costs of the trial and staying in Thailand. |
| Lake has said he does not know why the surrogate said she did not know he was gay. He said he was clear about that from the start with their surrogacy agency, New Life, which has branches in several countries. | Lake has said he does not know why the surrogate said she did not know he was gay. He said he was clear about that from the start with their surrogacy agency, New Life, which has branches in several countries. |
| The Bangkok-based New Life office has closed since commercial surrogacy was outlawed in Thailand in July 2015, following several high-profile scandals. There was a grace period for parents whose babies were already on the way, and Lake said he hoped the judge would be sympathetic to them. | The Bangkok-based New Life office has closed since commercial surrogacy was outlawed in Thailand in July 2015, following several high-profile scandals. There was a grace period for parents whose babies were already on the way, and Lake said he hoped the judge would be sympathetic to them. |
| Carmen has lived with the couple since her birth. | Carmen has lived with the couple since her birth. |