Registry for Reproductive Material Donors — The British Approach

Earlier on this blog, I reported on the proposal to develop a registry in the United States of reproductive material donors.

This issue has already been addressed in England where in March 2005, a law took effect which provides that egg and sperm donors do not have the right to remain anonymous.  Instead, children conceived by the use of reproductive materials have the right to learn the identities of their genetic parents once they reach age 18.

The following excerpts are from Sperm donor anonymity ends, BBC News, March 31, 2005:

The new rules will not be retrospective, so people who have already donated will not be affected.

But some experts are concerned that the removal of anonymity will deter donors from coming forward in the future.

And the British Fertility Society has warned that couples who do want eggs or sperm from anonymous donors may choose to go to unlicensed “backstreet” clinics, or travel abroad to countries with less strict regulations. * * *

While children will be able to access more information about the donor’s genetic origins, they will have no financial or legal claim.

Because the law only applies to people who donate from Friday, the first time children born in this way will have the option to ask for the identity of their donor will be when they turn 18 in 2023.

They will have to ask the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to release the information.

The donor will not be able to trace a child.

Special thanks to David S. Luber (The Estate Planning Law Firm, P.A.) for bringing this article to my attention.