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Suit filed to protect octuplets earnings, assets
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Gloria Allred announced this morning that she has filed a petition in Orange County, California, requesting that a guardian be appointed to protect the earnings, income, and assets of the Suleman octuplets.
The petition was filed on behalf of plaintiff, Paul Peterson, who is a former child actor (Mickey Mouse Club and The Donna Reed Show) and has been an active, outsoken child labor advocate for decades. He has been instrumental in the passage of several California laws designed to protect children in the entertainment industry.
His concerns about the octuplets mounted as the "circus" outside and inside Suleman's home continued to grow since the octuplets return home and as Suleman reports on them from an online webcast. There are also reports that she has inked a deal for a reality television show.
"This action we have taken by filing the petition in the Superior Court today is in the best interests of the babies," said Allred.
"There are laws, regulations and guidelines for even the youngest child employed in the entertainment business in California," says Peterson. "The income of children employed in the entertainment industry is their own; ten percent of the money must be saved until the age of majority. I want a guardian appointed for the estate of the octuplets to protect their earnings, income, and assets."
Nadya's attorney, Jeff Czech, calls the octuplets "incidental" to Suleman's ability to attain income from media and entertainment. He has confirmed that she is seeking out and close to signing a deal for a reality show.
"Nadya has been interested in, and hoping to find, something not so intrusive to the family and babies while, at the same time, (something to) sort of focus on trying to make a little income for herself," Czech said.
In California, infants can start working when they're 15 days old, provided that they (or their parents) have a work permit and a note from a licensed physician. According to the California labor code, the note must attest that the child was not born prematurely, was of normal birth weight, and is, in the doctor's opinion, "physically capable of handling the stress of filmmaking." Also, the child's lungs, eyes, heart, and immune system must be "sufficiently developed to withstand the potential risks."
Peterson takes issue with the concept that the octuplets are incidental to Suleman’s plans for any reality show, and wants a court to appoint a guardian so that the interests of the octuplets are protected should any income be derived from their presence in television or movies.
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