Netflix and RealHouse Productions LLC have been ordered to pay $385,000 in damages after an Indiana federal jury found they violated the privacy of a woman by disclosing her name in the documentary Our Father. The documentary, which aired in 2022, explores the story of Dr. Donald Cline, a fertility doctor who secretly inseminated dozens of patients with his own sperm, fathering nearly a hundred children without their consent.
After three and a half days of trial and seven hours of deliberation, the jury found that Netflix and RealHouse were liable for invasion of privacy but cleared the companies of claims made by a second woman. Despite the jury’s decision, the verdict was relatively small, considering the potential millions in compensatory and punitive damages that were initially sought.
Attorney Robert MacGill, representing the plaintiffs, called the verdict “mixed,” noting that his clients had not yet decided whether to appeal to the Seventh Circuit. He emphasized that the case set an important precedent for future privacy lawsuits involving filmmakers and distributors. “This jury verdict demonstrates how Americans are protected against invasions of privacy,” MacGill said. “It sets the foundation for future cases that will likely include damages for emotional distress and harm to privacy interests.”
