TL;DR
- A Jacksonville couple, Joshua and Natalie Strong, has sued Brown Fertility Associates alleging the clinic used another man’s sperm to create the embryo that became their daughter.
- Routine newborn blood typing flagged the problem within a day of birth; later DNA testing showed a 0% probability that Joshua is the child’s biological father.
- The lawsuit, filed September 17, 2026 in Duval County Circuit Court, also alleges the same error affected an earlier pregnancy and that the whereabouts of Joshua’s sperm samples remain unknown.
- The case highlights why chain of custody in fertility labs matters — and what questions Florida families should ask their clinic before treatment.
When Joshua and Natalie Strong walked into Brown Fertility in Jacksonville, they placed what the lawsuit calls their entire future in the clinic’s hands. According to the New York Post, which obtained the couple’s lawsuit, that trust was shattered when the Strongs learned their 1-year-old daughter was conceived with another man’s sperm.
What the Lawsuit Alleges
The complaint was filed Thursday, September 17, 2026, in Duval County Circuit Court against Brown Fertility Associates, P.A., its medical director Dr. Samuel E. Brown, and ten additional unnamed defendants, according to reporting by the New York Post and First Coast News.
Joshua Strong had undergone a vasectomy earlier in life, so he endured an invasive surgical sperm retrieval that produced four vials of sperm. The vials were given to the clinic with specific terms: fertilize Natalie’s eggs with Joshua’s sperm and transfer the resulting embryos to her. The couple paid tens of thousands of dollars for treatment at a clinic named one of “America’s Best Fertility Clinics” in 2025.
Their daughter was born in June 2025, but the couple says signs of trouble appeared almost immediately. “Within the first day of life, routine newborn blood typing produced a result that did not fit,” the lawsuit alleges. Their daughter typed as blood type B positive — described in the suit as biologically impossible given Natalie’s O negative and Joshua’s A negative blood types. Follow-up DNA testing confirmed a 0% probability that Joshua is the child’s biological father.
“It took away the euphoria of having a baby,” Natalie Strong told First Coast News. “It was my first child, I was in heaven. It was the best day of my life and then when that hit us, it took all the happiness away, which we should have had for a very long time.”
The allegations go further. This was the couple’s second IVF attempt with the clinic; the first, in mid-2024, ended in miscarriage about a month into the pregnancy. The Strongs allege the wrong sperm was likely used in that first attempt as well. And perhaps most disturbingly, the lawsuit states that Joshua’s original sperm samples are unaccounted for — the clinic has not said whether they were misplaced, discarded, or used in another patient’s procedure without his knowledge.
“The Strongs do not know whether Joshua has biological children, fathered without his knowledge, being raised today by other Brown Fertility patients who have no idea,” the lawsuit states.
The couple is seeking damages in excess of $50,000 and a trial by jury. Brown Fertility has not publicly responded in detail to the allegations; the clinic was reported as declining to explain what happened to the samples. These are allegations in a filed complaint, not findings by a court.
Why This Case Matters for Florida Families
Cases like the Strongs’ sit at the center of Jay Dermer’s work as a Florida attorney advocating for families affected by fertility negligence.
IN JAY’S WORDS
“My heart goes out to the Strong family, because I know how deeply this kind of betrayal cuts. And I want people to understand something: this happens more often than anyone would expect. Behind every one of these cases is a family that did everything right and put their trust in the process. They deserved better.”
Jay Dermer
Attorney, Dermer Law Firm
A few things stand out about this lawsuit from that perspective:
Chain of custody is everything. A fertility lab handles the most irreplaceable material a family will ever entrust to anyone. Every sample should be labeled, witnessed, and tracked at every handoff — from collection to fertilization to transfer to storage. When that chain breaks, the consequences are permanent.
Families have a right to an accounting. One of the most troubling allegations here is not just the alleged mix-up itself, but the claim that the clinic has not explained what happened to Joshua’s samples. When genetic material goes missing, families deserve straight answers about where it went.
Ask questions before treatment. Families considering IVF should ask their clinic directly: What witnessing and verification protocols do you use when handling sperm, eggs, and embryos? How are samples labeled and tracked? What happens to unused genetic material? And how does the clinic respond when a patient raises a concern? A reputable clinic should welcome those questions.
Problems can hide in plain sight. It was routine newborn blood typing — not the clinic — that first flagged this alleged error. Families should trust their instincts and pursue independent testing when something does not add up.
If you are a Florida family and something went wrong during fertility treatment, you do not have to navigate it alone. Contact Dermer Law Firm to discuss what happened — or visit our homepage to learn more about our practice.
This article provides general information about a filed lawsuit based on news reporting. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Allegations in a complaint are claims made by the plaintiffs, not proven facts.
For background on how Florida handles these claims, see our pages on fertility and reproductive negligence and the difference between medical malpractice and reproductive negligence.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is alleged in the Brown Fertility lawsuit?
Jacksonville couple Joshua and Natalie Strong allege that Brown Fertility Associates used another man’s sperm to create the embryo that became their daughter, and possibly in an earlier pregnancy that ended in miscarriage. The lawsuit was filed September 17, 2026, in Duval County Circuit Court against the clinic, its medical director Dr. Samuel E. Brown, and ten additional defendants. The clinic has not publicly admitted wrongdoing, and the allegations have not been proven in court.
How was the alleged sperm mix-up discovered?
According to the lawsuit, routine newborn blood typing within the first day of the child’s life produced a result the couple says was biologically impossible: the baby typed as B positive while both parents have negative blood types. Follow-up DNA testing showed a 0% probability that Joshua Strong is the child’s biological father.
What damages are the Strongs seeking?
The couple is seeking damages in excess of $50,000 and a trial by jury. The lawsuit also seeks answers about the whereabouts of Joshua’s original sperm samples, which the complaint says the clinic has not accounted for.
What should I ask my fertility clinic to help prevent mix-ups?
Ask about the clinic’s witnessing and verification protocols for handling sperm, eggs, and embryos; how samples are labeled and tracked at every step; what happens to unused genetic material; and how the clinic responds when a patient raises a concern. Clear, confident answers are a good sign.
What can a Florida family do if they suspect fertility negligence?
Document everything, preserve any test results or communications, and consider speaking with an attorney experienced in fertility negligence to understand your options. This article is general information, not legal advice.
