Court rules that sperm donor cannot be named father on birth certificate

A prolific sperm donor has been denied a declaration of parentage for a child conceived using his sperm.

Robert Albon, who claims to have fathered 180 children, applied to a UK court for parental rights of the child after discovering that the mother's partner, a transgender man, was named as the father on the child's birth certificate. The outgoing president of the Family Court, Sir Andrew McFarlane, dismissed the application but mentioned his judgment was specific to the facts in this case.

'It is not uncommon for conception to be arranged through sperm donated by a friend of the mother, or by some other single, informal arrangement. This case has involved sperm donation on a wholly different scale. Nothing that I have said in this judgment is intended to impact, one way or the other, on such cases, which will continue to be determined on their own facts as they arise,' he said.

Connie Atkinson, partner at law firm Kingsley Napley, who represented the child's mother, said the case was an important lesson for those who seek to conceive via sperm donation.

'Proper research needs to be undertaken and, if you are not in a position to use a UK licensed clinic (which gives more certainty about legal parentage), advice should be taken about conception and legal parentage and also the likely outcome in the event of a breakdown of any of the relationships involved,' she said.

It is rare for the family court to name participants in a case to protect the identity of children involved. However, in this instance, BBC Wales successfully argued to lift the restriction on naming Albon, claiming that it was in the public interest.

Albon is a US citizen who uses the alias Joe Donor to advertise sperm on social media for hundreds of pounds. He has made two previous applications to the Family Court: in 2023, he applied for custody of two children, and on another occasion, to have a child's surname changed to match his. Both requests were refused.

He was described by the judges who heard the previous cases as a man who 'lacks empathy and only has superficial relationships with others,' and who 'seeks to control others to prove that he is right, to secure recognition, to get his own way and to serve his own ends.'

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) strongly recommends having treatment at a licensed clinic where laws protect patients and donors.

Clare Ettinghausen, director of strategy and corporate affairs at the HFEA, said: 'Licensed clinics are also expected to adhere to the "ten-family limit", which restricts the number of families that can be created with a single donor through fertility treatment in the UK.'