An ethical examination of donor anonymity and a defence of a legal ban on anonymous donation and the establishment of a central register

Xavier Symons*, Henry Kha

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

Many if not most sperm donors in the early years of IVF donated under conditions of anonymity. There is, however, a growing awareness of the ethical cost of withholding identifying parental information from donor children. Today, anonymous donation is illegal in many jurisdictions, and some jurisdictions have gone as far as retrospectively invalidating contracts whereby donors were guaranteed anonymity. This article provides a critical evaluation of the ethics and legality of anonymous donation. We defend Australian and British legislation that has outlawed donor anonymity, and we argue for the establishment of a central registry that provides donor children with the ability to easily and reliably access identifying information about their donor parents.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)105-115
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Bioethical Inquiry
Volume21
Issue number1
Early online date18 Sept 2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2024

Keywords

  • Children’s rights
  • Donor anonymity
  • Gamete donation
  • Genealogical bewilderment
  • IVF

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