Canada Upholds Anonymity

The Canadian Supreme Court has refused to hear the case of a Toronto woman who is fighting to know the identity of her sperm donor father. Unfortunately, the Court of Canada has refused to hear her case and did not provide an explanation for its decision.

A previous B.C. Court of Appeal decision overturned a B.C. Supreme Court decision and ruled that she doesn’t have the legal right to know the identity of her father. The woman seeking the identity of her father was conceived using an anonymous donor as her parents were not able to conceive naturally. Her mother and father were completely aware at the time of procedure that the donor would remain anonymous but she insists on trying to determine the identity of her biological father on behalf of all the other children of sperm donation who wish to know their genetic background.

It’s been a common recurring theme in the courts over the last few years that children of anonymous donors are wanting to know more about their genetic background, not only for personal reasons, but more for medical history and information that could potentially serve as preventative care to avoid family history of a certain medical condition.

Each country that is dealing with similar cases is having different outcomes and views on the situation. Is this the potential end to the anonymous sperm donor? Or is more information just needed from a donor? It’s a difficult situation for potential donors as their anonymity is subject to potential court intervention in the future.