An attorney is suing a Michigan judge for $4.1 million, claiming he fathered two of her children then failed to take responsibility and provide for them. She alleges that she and the judge were engaged in a secret love affair that last nearly 20 years, but recently ended when the judge remarried. In addition to $100,000 for each year of their relationship and $100,000 for each year of the children’s lives, she has also requested that the judge provide her with $2,000 in monthly child support payments.
The judge is known for scolding non-custodial fathers who fail to pay child support. In 2010, he rejected the plea agreement of one man who reportedly owed $530,000 in child support to 13 different women. In doing so, the judge referred to himself as “a firm believer that children have a right to support from both their parents.”
The lawsuit, which also seeks a ruling that the judge is the father of the attorney’s two children, claims the judge kept the relationship secret in order to protect his political career. The judge acknowledged a close friendship with the plaintiff and explained that he signed an affidavit of parentage in order to allow the attorney’s children to collect medical benefits, though he did not admit to actually fathering the children. He declined to comment further on the case, redirecting all questions to his lawyer, who suggested that the plaintiff use in vitro fertilization to conceive one or both of the children.
Following the filing, the defendant reportedly requested that the case be closed to public view due to the potential humiliation and embarrassment it could cause. He also asked that the details of his alleged “romantic and sexual relationship” with the plaintiff be removed from the lawsuit “due to the fact they are irrelevant, immaterial, impertinent, scandalous and indecent matter.” The judge hearing the case has yet to act on these requests.
Source: Mlive.com, “Paternity suit seeks $4 million from Genesee County judge known for scolding absent fathers,” Ron Fonger, Sept. 21, 2012