It probably doesn’t occur to anyone donating sperm that they may have to pay child support in the future. In a bizarre instance in another state, that’s just what happened.
The man was in a relationship with a woman but they never married. Back in 2006, he donated sperm for her in vitro fertilization. The woman ultimately gave birth to triplets, one of whom died.
He did sign a declaration of paternity and was listed on the birth certificates as the father. But after that, he says, he moved on, marrying another woman in 2007.
The following year, the man was surprised to be facing a child support lawsuit. He was ordered to pay child support for the children, which was made final by a state judge in October 2010. He appealed, and an appeals court recently overturned the original ruling. He is now off the hook for paying child support.
The 47-year-old man, a former police officer and a competitive bodybuilder, says it is not uncommon that people ask him to donate sperm. He doesn’t plan to going forward, calling the situation a “valuable lesson,” according to Lubbock Online.
Over the years, he says he paid thousands of dollars in child support, which stopped when the ruling was overturned in March. He says he was “blown away” by being ordered to pay in the first place. His is an unusual situation, to be sure, but it is not unheard of.
Source: Lubbock Online, “California court says Texas sperm donor owes no child support,” April 12, 2012