A man named Jonathan from the Netherlands has been ordered to stop donating sperm after allegedly fathering over 550 children worldwide through fertility clinics, online, and abroad. He could be fined over €100,000 if he attempts to donate again.
Although Dutch regulations limit donors to fathering no more than 25 children within 12 families, this man has reportedly fathered between 550 and 600 children since 2007. As a result, the court in The Hague has instructed him to provide a list of all clinics he used to donate his sperm and demand that they destroy his remaining sperm.
The man was taken to court by a foundation that defends donor children’s rights and a mother who believes he fathered her child.
The court has prohibited him from donating semen, contacting prospective parents or advertising his services to them, and joining any organization that connects prospective parents. The court ruled that the man had misled prospective parents about the number of children he had already fathered, and this could have negative psychosocial consequences for the children in the future.
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In the past, the Netherlands has had fertility scandals, one of which involved a doctor who was accused of using his own sperm to impregnate patients without their consent, resulting in the confirmation that he was the biological father of 49 children.
