What do you make of this?

[JBee]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/10978332/My-life-was-a-lie-...-now-gaps-on-my-birth-certificate-tell-the-truth-about-my-father.html

Didn't think they could do that.

[Langley Vale Sue]

She has set a precedent with this ruling. I can sort of understand why she wanted to do it, but there must be thousands of children conceived by AID (or by other methods!) who wouldn't have the means to have their birth certificate changed even if they wanted to.

I feel quite disturbed by this ruling. Suppose her presumed father was dead and she only had her mother's word that he was not her biological father. How would proof be obtained then? There must be many people out there that have doubts over their parentage (thinking especially about teenagers during a row with their parents) particularly if there are no obvious likenesses between the father and child.

We all deserve to know our roots but at what cost?

[Merry]

I wonder if the ruling would have been the same if her parents had been married at the time of her birth?

A few years ago (I don't know about now) a child born to married parents was considered to be the child of those parents in legal terms, regardless of who the biological father was unless someone else was named on the birth cert.

So, now they are triplets with two of them having a father named and the other not. Hmmmm........

[Shona]

Merry, I was wondering that about her brothers, as well!

[Asa]

I think it's fair and right and I feel sorry for her that she can't get the details of her biological father. However, I don't really get her need to do it.

[Olde Crone]

Oh, what a can of worms. I do wonder what she expects from her "donor father" if she should ever identify him. Does she expect to have a meaningful relationship with him? She is very angry, isn't she, but not with her mother, just with the man who is named on her BC.

As someone pointed out on another forum, the name of your father on your birth certificate reflects the name of the man who has legal responsibility for you - and that is not always your biological father.

I do understand what motivates a woman to go to such lengths to have a child...but did she think of this kind of fall out, where people are getting hurt?

OC

[JBee]

I pity the children of all these different scenario's. Gay parents, donor eggs, donor sperm, surrogate mothers etc etc. Heard there's likely to be babies born with 3 parents in the near future - there will be some confused children growing up.

[kiterunner]

I was looking for some info about my (half-)great aunt's brother in law, the American painter George Copeland Ault, a couple of weeks ago and found some stuff on Google books about him which included a story he told his wife about how his father (Charles Ault) was friends with a childless couple when the Ault family were living in England (end of 19th / start of 20th century) and he offered his services to the wife, erm, in the old-fashioned sperm donation method, and was taken up on the offer. I never finished reading the story as I got sidetracked (and it was one of those "snippet view" things that takes ages to winkle out of Google books) so I will try again tomorrow. But anyway, sperm donation is not as new as you might think!

[JBee]

They do say that you only know for certain who the baby's mother is!!!!! but that's not true now is it?

[kiterunner]

Artist in Woodstock: George Ault, the Independent Years, by Louise Ault

page 96
For the first time he told me the story his father had revealed to no one but him: In London, before 1911, the senior Aults had among their friends a childless couple who longed for children. It came about that Charles Henry talked privately with the childless wife, after which they lay together once, and in due time a son was born. Later, just once again, and a second son arrived. The husband believed them to be his and raised them, and it was a happy family. In private, the wife gave Charles Henry a photograph of each of the boys.

[Langley Vale Sue]

About 40 years ago I had friends who were desperate for children. They had been married for 5 years and had had tests (such as they were back then) which showed the husband had a low sperm count making it theoretically possible, but unlikely, that he could father a child. To cut a long story short, an old friend of the wife, who didn't want the responsibility of children, offered his services and a child was conceived and born. Three years later another child was conceived and born. Although I have lost touch with them over the years, as far as I know the husband and the (now adult) children still believe that the husband, who is named on both birth certificates as the father, is the biological father.

[Olde Crone]

Sue

and where is the harm in that? The problems start when someone discovers the truth.


When I was a child we had neighbours who lost their only child in very tragic circumstances. They had been married many years before she appeared and was their "little miracle". After this tragedy, the wife suddenly became pregnant with twins and my mum told me (when I was an adult!) that she had used AID (artificial insemination by a donor, for thise of you born in a post-AIDS era!).

OC

[Langley Vale Sue]

Sue

and where is the harm in that? The problems start when someone discovers the truth.


When I was a child we had neighbours who lost their only child in very tragic circumstances. They had been married many years before she appeared and was their "little miracle". After this tragedy, the wife suddenly became pregnant with twins and my mum told me (when I was an adult!) that she had used AID (artificial insemination by a donor, for thise of you born in a post-AIDS era!).

OC

Exactly OC. What's the saying? Anyone can father a child but it takes a special man to be a father to a child.

AID was the only official way to go back in the 1960s/1970s (pre DNA testing days) and many students donated their sperm for a fee to supplement their studies. They were promised lifelong anonymity and ,although it possibly brings/brought its own problems, it was the only way to go for most couples where the male was infertile - apart from the 'natural' way with a willing male friend of course! ;)