Tiffany Score and Steven Mills were thrilled when they learned they were expecting a baby after turning to the Fertility Center of Orlando for help. Like many couples who use IVF, they hoped the treatment would help them build the family they had long wanted.
But when their daughter, Shea, was born on December 11, 2025, the moment brought both happiness and heartbreak. Tiffany and Steven soon realized the child was not biologically related to either of them.
Tiffany and Steven also wanted to find Shea’s biological parents, even though doing so brought more emotional and legal questions. A new update has now confirmed that the genetic parents have been identified.
A ‘moral obligation’
In a statement given to PEOPLE, Tiffany and Steven said finding Shea’s biological parents allowed them to close “one chapter in our heartbreaking journey.” Still, they made clear that the discovery does not end everything they are facing.
“The results of testing delivered to us today confirm that our baby’s genetic parents have been identified,” the couple said in a statement released through their attorney on April 22.
The couple also said they would keep the identities of Shea’s biological parents “confidential” so they could “respect their privacy.” They did not share any further details about the genetic parents.
Fox News spoke with attorney Mara Hatfield in January about the legal questions in the case. She said: “What are the rights that they, as the biologically nurturing now 10-month parents, have vs. the rights of the genetic parents that they hope to identify?”
“That is very much a developing question that the law is trying to identify, because unfortunately, these mistakes very rarely happen, but they do happen.”
“Only one thing is as absolutely certain today as it was on the day our daughter was born —we will love and will be this child’s parents forever,” the couple added.
‘New issues that will have to be resolved’
The clinic that handled Tiffany and Steven’s IVF treatment has since said it will close its doors on May 20. That planned closure comes while questions still remain about what happened and what became of the couple’s embryos.
“This ends one chapter in our heartbreaking journey, but it raises new issues that will have to be resolved,” the statement continued.
“In addition, questions about the disposition of our own embryos are still unanswered and are even more unlikely to ever be answered.”
“The current legal proceeding will remain open to address those matters,” he explained.
“However, we expect that we will now also begin to focus on the need for our clients to be compensated for the expenses they have incurred and the severe emotional trauma that they endured and will continue to experience.”
For the couple, identifying Shea’s biological parents answered one major question, but it also opened the door to others. They still want answers about their own embryos, the clinic’s handling of the IVF process, and the emotional cost of what they say they have been forced to live through.
The legal case is expected to remain open while those issues are addressed. In the meantime, Tiffany and Steven have said one point has not changed: they consider themselves Shea’s parents and say they will love her forever.
