Northern Ireland

Woman's bid to be legally declared parent of child conceived through sperm donor rejected

The High Court in Belfast
The High Court in Belfast The High Court in Belfast

INADEQUATE planning between a lesbian couple and a man in Northern Ireland who provided sperm for a child was "appalling", a High Court judge said.

As Mr Justice O'Hara refused one of the women's bid to be legally declared a second parent, he criticised the lack of definitive agreements on any role to be played by the biological father.

He said: "People put more care into arranging a holiday."

The case centred on a dispute over the couple's claims that they should both have parental recognition.

In 2014 the women, Ms R and Ms A, agreed with a Mr P that he would provide sperm for Ms R to have a baby. At the time the couple were not in a civil partnership, but agreed to co-parent. Later that year a boy, referred to as C, was born.

Ms R is the only person named on the birth certificate, with Mr P content his name does not feature. The judge said there was never a definitive agreement on what role the man would have in C's life.

Mr P asked that he have some contact and at least one visit after the child was born.

The two women challenged his right on the basis that he is not the boy's father in any legally recognised way.

"It is appalling that the planning between the adults for something so important and long lasting was so inadequate," Mr Justice O'Hara said.

With the two women now civil partners, C and his birth mother have taken Ms A's surname.

However, Ms A sought a further declaration of parentage, so she could be named as the boy's second parent and added to the birth certificate.

In his judgment, Mr Justice O'Hara held that Ms A did not meet requirements for legal parental status. The judge said the declaration being sought was "asking much too much".

Ms R had stated that Mr P "provided the gamete by which fertilisation occurred", but was not C's natural father.

Instead, she claimed, the two women were the child's natural parents.

However, Mr Justice O'Hara ruled: "That is simply wrong - Ms A is not and cannot be the natural parent of C."