Clayton Echard’s lengthy paternity fight against an ex has come to a close with the court siding with the former Bachelor.
The 31-year-old’s court battle against Laura Owens on Tuesday, June 18. “In this case, the gravamen of [Echards’s] position is that [Owens] has fabricated her pregnancy, a condition which cannot have resulted from the parties’ interactions, because according to [Echard] they never had sexual intercourse,” court documents obtained by Us Weekly state.
The docs continue: “[Echard] seeks to have the protective order invalidated based on the
alleged fabrication, while [Owens] essentially argues that even if she was never pregnant, the
sexual activity between the two, and Respondent’s subsequent harassing online conduct, are
sufficient to sustain the order regardless.”
The trial resulted in the court agreeing with Echard.
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According to the docs, “Laura Owens knowingly presented a false claim, knowingly violated a court order compelling disclosure or discovery such that an award of attorney fees and costs is appropriate.” As a result of his court victory, Echard has been granted his Petition for Non-Paternity and will be paid for attorney fees.
Echard’s lawyer, Gregg Woodnick, said in a statement to Us, “We are pleased with the outcome and Judge Mata’s thorough ruling. We hope this is the end of a long saga for all the victims.”
The trial began on Monday, June 10, nearly a year after Owens, who was unnamed at the time, accused Echard of getting her pregnant with twins following a one-night stand. In paperwork filed in August 2023, the woman claimed that she and Echard “engaged in sexual activity” earlier that year and requested that he take a paternity test.
Owens alleged that Echard asked her to prove her pregnancy to him in person by taking tests at his home. Echard told The U.S. Sun at the time that he wasn’t giving her claims “the time of day because it’s baseless,” adding that they “did not have sexual intercourse.”
Echard subsequently shut down Owens’ claims that he wasn’t cooperating with taking a paternity test by posting his receipt from a DNA testing company via his Instagram Story in September 2023. That same month, he told fans via Instagram that other men reached out to him about similar claims made against them by Owens. The court also noted the other claims, recommending Owens be investigated further. “It is further ordered, the Court having determined that Laura Owens has a pattern of similar, if not identical behavior, and court involvement, referring this matter to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for review of Laura Owen’s actions.”
Echard revealed in October 2023 that his paternity test results revealed that he was not the father of her children. “They said little to no fetal DNA present. Let’s go baby!” he said in an Instagram video. “I knew that was going to happen and thankfully five months of torture can finally be put to rest.”
Owens, however, claimed in a statement to Us Weekly at the time that Echard was “lying” about the test’s results. “I just heard from the lab. Here is the relevant part of the [phone] call. Regardless of what Clayton says, the test is not inconclusive. The ‘testing is ongoing’ because they said that there was an issue with my sample and that they need another sample from me, which I am giving first thing on Wednesday,” she alleged. “They have to send a testing kit from Maryland to Arizona, so that’s why there is a delay and why I can’t get it done on Monday.”
Owens also stated that an employee named Brett from the biotech company that conducted the test informed her that the test was not “inconclusive” but “ongoing” and that they needed “another sample to finish it up.”
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Echard revealed in a lengthy press release statement from Woodnick Law, PLLC, in March that he was headed to trial against Owens, who was referred to by her initials L.O., over her “faux pregnancy.” He claimed his ex created a “sham” by spreading false information to news outlets after the Bachelor Nation star refused to “enter into her ‘dating contract’” and not meeting to “discuss a parenting plan for the pretend twins.”
The statement went on to accuse Owens of “fabricating pregnancies and doctoring medical evidence as a means to extort relationships several times, dating back ten (10) years,” including allegedly faking medical records and falsely stating that doctors confirmed her pregnancy.
Echard’s statement went on to state that Owens informed him in December 2023 that she was no longer pregnant. “After failing to appear at her deposition, the Court set a status hearing. At the status hearing, the world learned that she claimed she miscarried before her November testimony. L.O. was deposed on 3/1/24,” the press release read.
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Owens responded to Echard’s press release with a statement to Us at the time, stating, “My pregnancy was definitely confirmed on June 1, 2023, by an urgent care facility.”
Per court documents, she admitted to altering multiple tests to show higher, viable hCG numbers and showing Echards a sonogram that was from a YouTube video posted seven years ago.
Echard appeared on season 18 of The Bachelorette before leading season 26 of The Bachelor the following year. He briefly rekindled his romance with his final contestant Susie Evans after filming but the two eventually called it quits in September 2022.
