A JURY in Oregon awarded US$2.9M to the parents of a Down syndrome baby who sued for "wrongful birth" after their daughter was unexpectedly born with the abnormality.

Ariel and Deborah Levy say they would have aborted their now four-year-old daughter had they known about the condition back in 2007.

Initially overjoyed at the birth, they say they were left in a state of shock when hospital staff told them their daughter looked like she had Down syndrome.

A doctor then asked Deborah Levy if she'd had a prenatal test, to which Levy responded in the affirmative - the results of the test had revealed they would have a normal, healthy child.

Within days of her birth, however, a blood test confirmed the little girl had Down syndrome.

The couple sued Legacy Health for US$3m, claiming that Deborah Levy would have aborted her pregnancy had she known her daughter had Down syndrome, The Oregonian reported.

The lawsuit blamed Legacy's Centre for Maternal-Fetal Medicine in Portland and a Legacy lab for allegedly botching the test.

The Levys - who insist they dearly love their daughter, Kalanit - wanted Legacy to pay for the extra lifetime costs of caring for her.

The jury voted 12-0, taking less than six hours before reaching a verdict, capping a highly emotional trial in Multnomah County Circuit Court, The Oregonian reported.

The jury ruled that Legacy Health was negligent.

Deborah Levy, who had held her emotions in check throughout the trial, began to cry as Judge Karin Immergut read the verdict, the newspaper added.

Originally published as Couple awarded $2.9m for 'wrongful birth'