Jeff Lewis Says Daughter Is 'Biologically My Child' as He Rails Against 50/50 Custody Proposal
Jeff Lewis is sounding off about his ongoing custody battle with Gage Edward, claiming that he does not want his ex-partner to have equal time with their daughter Monroe and noting the 3 year old is "biologically my child."
On Thursday's episode of Lewis's SiriusXM radio show Jeff Lewis Live, the former Flipping Out star got into a heated discussion about the status of their legal situation.
Since splitting from Edward in February 2019 after 10 years together, Lewis has been open on his show about their tumultuous back-and-forth over custody of Monroe. The former pair previously had an informal agreement, but when that system broke down, they began involving their lawyers. An attempt at mediation to find a permanent arrangement has so far been unsuccessful.
Just last month, Edward filed a lawsuit against Lewis, asking for equal shared custody of Monroe and legal support, as well as a request to change their daughter's name from Monroe Christine Lewis to Monroe Christine Edward Lewis.
Lewis has promised to fight Edward's suit, and has continued to talk about their situation on air. On Thursday's show, he pointed out that the two had never married, and that he, not Edward, is Monroe's biological father.
"She's biologically my child," Lewis said of Monroe, who was born via surrogate in 2016. "I just think that complicates things."
According California State Law, both Lewis and Edward have equal parental rights to Monroe, regardless of biology, because both of their names are listed on Monroe's birth certificate as her parents.
Edward did not reply to PEOPLE's request for comment. He previously told PEOPLE, "I cannot comment on pending litigation."
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Jeff Lewis/Instagram
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Lewis went on to claim on Thursday that Edward was seeking custody for monetary gain only.
"[My lawyer and I] know what Gage's end game is, which is money," Lewis said. "The reason, in my opinion, he wants 50 percent custody is because he wants maximum child support."
"He hasn't been honest," Lewis claimed. "For the last year he told me he didn't want child support. He lied to me to my face."
The former reality star then said he would be open to sitting down with Edward for mediation, something they have done unsuccessfully in the past.
"I'll be far more generous if we could just sit down and work it out," Lewis said. "I will be far, far, far more generous than I ever would when people are pushing me, and backing me into a corner, and threatening me, and expecting this entitlement this bulls—. This can all be solved. … But when I've got these f—ing bastard attorneys threatening me all the time and demanding money, the last thing I want to do is give in."
Jeff Lewis/Instagram
Gage Edward/Instagram
Despite Lewis's clear frustration, he still said that Edward was "a good dad."
Still, he told listeners, he has Monroe's "best interest" at heart and wants stability for her.
"My child is with me 70 percent of the time. She's happy. She's well-adjusted," Lewis said. "I'm very careful. I never say anything negative about him [in front of Monroe]. I actually think he's a good dad. A really good dad! But I don't think he can handle any more than what he's got going on."
"Look I spent 10 years with him, so there's a part of me that still loves him which is why I'll take care of him if he'll stop being such a prick and start putting Monroe first," Lewis said.
Monroe has already had one other unsettling experience this year, when she she was expelled from her elite Montessori preschool in September over comments Lewis made about the institution on the radio. She has since started at a new school, to which Lewis said he made a significant donation.
Lewis and Edward began living apart in January 2019 and officially split in February of last year.
