As the laws regulating assisted reproductive technology continue to develop in California and throughout the United States, it is interesting to see how other nations are handling the hotly-debated issues of sperm and egg donation, surrogacy, in vitro fertilization, and the myriad of other topics that accompany those. A recent paternity case in Australia parallels the legal concerns that some in California may also have.

A sperm donor in Sydney has been forced to have his name removed from his biological daughter's birth certificate following a court ruling stating that he is no longer legally recognized as her father despite contributing half of her genetic material.

The man decided to donate his sperm after replying to a newspaper ad placed by a lesbian couple looking for a sperm donor. When the woman gave birth in 2001, both the mother and father's names were put on the birth certificate.

In 2006, despite the couple being separated for five years, the mother's partner wanted her name on the birth certificate instead of the biological father's. Her reasoning was that she still shares parental responsibility, and having her name on the certificate would help avoid confusion with institutions such as schools and hospitals.

She prevailed in court and the judge ordered that the birth certificate be altered, replacing the father's name with the mother's former partner's name. The father was very upset, lamenting that the law was inadequate to protect the parental rights of people like him. It is unknown whether he and the daughter have a relationship.

The presiding judge noted that the sperm donor did not have an agreement before the birth that his name would be on the birth certificate. While he sympathized with the man, he had no legal recourse.

Such cases point out the need for clear law and protection of rights in matters of paternity. In a country where same-sex marriage is gaining ground, the law will need to work to keep up.

Source: FindLaw, "Family law: Sperm donor is not father in eyes of the law," Maya Driver, August 18, 2011