Sperm Donor Fights Child Support Order
By Andrew Lu on January 3, 2013 9:58 AM | No TrackBacks
Do sperm donors have to pay child support?

If Kansas authorities get their way, that may be the case.

Four years ago, William Marotta donated sperm to a lesbian couple after answering an online ad. A baby girl was born, and now the donor is suddenly faced with a child support bill, reports the Associated Press.

Whether the 46-year-old Topeka man will have to pay the $6,000 in back child support, as well as ongoing financial support, may hinge upon the fact that no doctors were used in the artificial insemination.

Marotta said that when he answered the ad and donated his sperm, he reached an agreement with the lesbian couple that he would waive all of his parental rights and financial obligations, writes the AP.

But this apparently is not good enough for the state. Kansas officials say that because Marotta did not work through a clinic or doctor, as required by state law for artificial insemination, he is technically the baby's father. Under a 1994 Kansas law, only when a sperm donor works with a licensed physician is the donor not considered to be the father.

In Marotta's case, it's reported that he simply dropped off a container of his semen at the couple's home, and the mother successfully inseminated herself.

A law professor says that unless a donor follows the laws of the state, there is "strict liability for sperm," reports the AP. In other words, unless you work with a doctor, the sperm donor will be considered the father. The only issue may be whether the agreement reached between Marotta and the couple is enough to overcome the paternal presumption.

Sperm donors and those undergoing artificial insemination must be careful to follow the rules in their jurisdiction. While in the movies you may see couples asking friends to donate sperm or carry an egg, the reality can be very different. Without following the proper protocols, donors and carriers may find themselves legally responsible for the child.

Are you kidding me?!
How shady, these women should be grateful, not greedy.

I have always wondered if those donors would ever want to see their child or not? I know they would not want to pay support but wouldn't it bug them about what they looked like? I know it would me.
I think men are totally different then women!

I dont know how the donors feel not knowing but i can tell you what its like from the childs prospective theres always that thought of every adult guy you see you automaticly think is that my dad, could that be him . and you allways worry that you have siblings and that you go out with a guy and he will turn out to be ur half brother.

the fact that any couple would try and sue him for child support if he is a legitimate donor is just wrong. there is a possibility they set it up as a scam from the start