Maternity tourism firm ordered to return cash
Print Edition
A woman was awarded 60,000 yuan (US$9,300) in compensation from a US-based maternity tourism operator’s local branch in an appeal after she tried to cancel her childbirth service contract but was refused, Shanghai No.1 Intermediate People’s Court said yesterday.
The woman, surnamed Liang, wanted to terminate her contract with the company because she learned that one of its overseas maternity homes was raided by US federal police.
The appeal court ruled that since the maternity home is under investigation, Liang had every reason to believe that it could not provide a secure environment for giving birth and therefore her request was justified.
Under Chinese contract law, if one party of a contract finds that the other’s reputation has been seriously tarnished or that they will be unable to meet their obligations, they have a right to terminate.
According to the court, Liang, who wanted to deliver a baby in the US, signed a contract with the operator’s local branch‚ Shanghai Meilu Business Consulting Co, for its overseas childbirth service in January last year and gave it a down payment of 36,000 yuan.
However, one month later, she learned that its parent firm in the US, USA Happy Baby Inc‚ was being investigated by federal agencies and that many pregnant women were forced to leave the home where they were to give birth. She then visited the company several times asking for a termination of her contract as well as compensation.
But her request was turned down by Meilu, which told her that USA Happy Baby had two maternity homes in the US and the one that was raided was not where she would be staying.
Liang then filed a lawsuit against the firm.
The court ruled that the firm must refund only half the down payment, saying that it could not be considered at fault because the request was based on unfounded concerns. Unsatisfied with the verdict, she filed an appeal.
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