Who's Your Daddy?
I recently blogged about a court decision from British Columbia dealing with sperm donation and the right of a child, born with the assistance of a sperm donor, to his/her 'father's' personal information. It should come as no surprise that the issue seems to be at the forefront of the news once again; yet this time, the world is focused on the sheer number of children born to each sperm donor, which somewhat shockingly can be in the hundreds.
The potential for legal issues relating to the various modern fertility possibilities abound. Laws, both statute and common, tend to be inherently a few steps behind science. Like the little sibling you were always trying to shake, we are constantly playing the game of catch up, trying to deal with the 'next frontier' and making sure that the societal impact is as reasonable as possible.
Whether legislatures are prepared to enact laws that regulate sperm donation, and whether the BC case law finding will make its way through the rest of the provincial courts to the same end, reaching through the various fields to ours, is something I wouldn't want to speculate on.
For now, it seems that children born of sperm donors have no claim on the Estate of their deceased 'father'. Certainly though, the topic is interesting enough, and with the right case, the right story, the right counsel, and the right time, law reform will happen. In what direction, and on what specific point, you'll just have to stay tuned to find out.
Thanks for reading, have a great weekend,
Nadia M. Harasymowycz - Click here for more information on Nadia Harasymowycz.
