State now investigating SF fertility clinic; new lawsuit filed

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A Sacramento-area couple has filed a lawsuit against Pacific Fertility Center alleging breach of contract and negligence following an incident at its San Francisco clinic over the weekend in which a storage tank containing frozen embryos and eggs malfunctioned.

The suit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and seeks in excess of $5 million in damages which is the typical threshold for federal class action filings.

RELATED: Patient files lawsuit against SF fertility center after loss of eggs in tank malfunction

The plaintiffs are represented by the law firm Peiffer Rosca Wolf Abdullah Carr & Kane (PRW) of San Francisco.

"These are families went to sleep thinking that their future children were safe and being taken care of," says PRW attorney Tracey Cowan. "But they woke up the next day, and learned that their dreams had been shattered."

Cowan said her clients began working with the center in 2014 and had planned to start a family next month. They previously paid more than $10,000 to undergo procedures to preserve their embryos and eggs at the clinic.

RELATED: 2 fertility clinics respond to egg, embryo storage failures

Clinic officials sent an email to roughly 500 clients and/or families that were impacted by the tank's failure.

This lawsuit comes after a separate class action lawsuit was filed by a San Francisco woman earlier this week. ABC7 News has since learned the Pacific Fertility Center is now being investigated by the California Department of Public Health.

The clinic's executives and attorneys have not responded to multiple requests for comment.

Click here to read the details of the lawsuit.

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