Dutch sperm donor ordered to stop fathering children globally
A Dutchman, known as Jonathan, who fathered over 550 children worldwide through sperm donations, has been ordered by a court in The Hague to stop or face a fine of more than €100,000 ($111,275).
The man, who had been banned from donating to fertility clinics in the Netherlands in 2017 after fathering over 100 children, continued to donate sperm abroad and online.
A foundation protecting donor children’s rights and the mother of one of the children allegedly fathered by his sperm took him to court.
The court ordered him to provide a list of all the clinics he has used and to order them to destroy his sperm.
The donor was found to have “deliberately misinformed” prospective parents about the number of children he had already fathered.
“The point is that this kinship network with hundreds of half-brothers and half-sisters is much too large,” a spokesman for the court, Gert-Mark Smelt, said.
The Judge, Thera Hesselink, further added that the court “prohibits the defendant from donating his semen to new prospective parents after the issuing of this judgment.”
The man is also forbidden to contact any prospective parents “with the wish that he was willing to donate semen… advertise his services to prospective parents or join any organization that establishes contact between prospective parents”, the judge added.