HOUSTON – A Harris County judge has ordered Dominique Side, the former owner of Houston-based Surrogacy Escrow Account Management, or SEAM, and the company to pay families more than $1 million after its sudden collapse last year.
The partial judgement was signed last week by Judge Donna Roth, awarding the families all over the world $1,045,158.24.
Dominique Side & Surrogacy Escrow Account Management have been ordered to pay families around the world $1M+ after SEAM suddenly collapsed last year. She's accused of misappropriating more than $16M to fund her rap music career & a lavish lifestyle. https://t.co/fHK8AkyOXQ
— KPRC 2 Bryce Newberry (@KPRC2Bryce) July 22, 2025
“It’s the closure of one chapter of a many-chapter, volumed book,” attorney Marianne Robak said. “This is a big victory for the families.”
Side’s company shut down last summer and money that had been deposited by intended parents, meant to pay their surrogates, suddenly vanished.
The civil lawsuit against Side, her business partner, and their music production company, claims that more than $16 million in escrow funds appear to have vanished, and millions of dollars were used to “bankroll her music career as ‘Dom,’ a racy rap and R&B singer and music producer.”
The money also reportedly went to lavish trips around the world, designer clothing, and luxury vehicles.
KPRC 2 spoke with several families after the company’s collapse, who said it left them scrambling to figure out how to pay their surrogates and others said it ended their dreams of ever becoming parents.
Side and her business partner, Anthony Hall, were accused of using the money to open a music studio in the Spring Branch area.
“It’s a slow process anytime we’re trying to uncover fraudulently transferred funds and then get the funds back into the hands of the people that deserve it,” Robak said. “But they’re relieved that we’re one step closer.”
In June of 2024, families received an email from SEAM that indicated payments to surrogates had been delayed due to “significant issues with our bank.”
But within weeks, the accounts were shut down and families started receiving auto-responses that indicated a federal investigation was underway and “Under the advice of counsel, (Side was) not permitted to respond to any inquiries regarding the investigation.”
Side has not responded to any of KPRC 2’s requests for comment.
“Every month or so we’ll get an email of a brand new born baby that’s coming to the world via their surrogate. So there’s always been a silver lining to what these families have gone through and some of these families are being made whole, which is wonderful. For the families that have not been able to pursue this path, we’re really hoping that these recoveries will help them in the future,” Robak said.
While the judgement has been signed, it remains unclear when the intended parents who filed suit will receive payment. There’s currently an injunction, which has frozen assets connected to Side and SEAM, which is expected to be used to pay the families back.
On Tuesday, the FBI told KPRC 2 News a federal criminal investigation involving Side is ongoing.
"To preserve the integrity of the investigation, we will not share details of the ongoing process. We continue to encourage anyone who may have information to please come forward.
Anyone who may have been victimized by SEAM should fill out the FBI’s “Seeking Victims” electronic form."
After all this time, families are wondering when they may see justice.
“It’s frustrating. We’ve uncovered all this evidence. We have everything before the courts, and the FBI has had the same, presumably, exact evidence that we’ve had, and I don’t know what they’re doing over there,” Robak said.
