Fertility clinic drops defamation clause after complaint

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - A complaint from a New Jersey woman led a fertility clinic to remove a clause from its contract that punishes customers for writing critical reviews.

Nadiya Oliver said Fertility Bridges threatened her with legal action after she wrote on her blog about a poor experience with the company, which has offices in California and Illinois.

Oliver and her husband paid for an egg donor but were dismayed when the individual reneged. They said Fertility Bridges refused to give them a refund. Oliver wrote about it on her personal blog, and she said the clinic threatened to sue her. Oliver said the company even accused her and her husband of attempting to steal human tissue.

The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs opened an investigation after Oliver filed a Better Business Bureau complaint in 2015.

On Wednesday, New Jersey's Division of Consumer Affairs announced Fertility Bridges would remove the clause in its contract that threatens customers with a $10,000 fine if they write critical online reviews.

The Philadelphia Inquirer (http://bit.ly/2j8rO36) reports the company will also pay a $1,500 fine. It says a company attorney did not respond to a request for comment.

"No good could ever come from feeling victimized and being silent about it," Oliver wrote in a blog post.

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Information from: The Philadelphia Inquirer, http://www.inquirer.com