In the Netherlands, a court has banned a sperm donor who has had about 550 children from continuing to donate. Dutch media claim that the man's name is Jonathan M., he is 41 years old. He was sued by the mother of one of the children, allegedly born from his sperm, and the foundation for the protection of the rights of children born from donor sperm.
According to the Dutch clinical guidelines, no more than 25 children in 12 families should be born from donor sperm of one person. According to the court, Jonathan began donating sperm in 2007 and has since had between 550 and 600 children. In addition to donating sperm, he was banned from contacting the intended parents of "his" children to let them know "that he is willing to donate sperm." Also, Jonathan should not advertise his donor services and cooperate with organizations that are looking for potential parents.
The court ruled that the man deliberately misinformed potential parents about the number of children who were born from his sperm. “All of these parents are now faced with the fact that their children are part of a huge kinship network with hundreds of half-siblings that they did not choose,” the court said in a statement. The judges also concluded that Jonathan's actions may have led to psychological problems in the children.
Earlier in the Netherlands there were also several scandals related to the actions of sperm donors. So, at the beginning of 2022, it became known that gynecologist Jos Beek fertilized with his sperm several patients who turned to him for professional help in finding a donor and conceiving. At least 21 children were born to him.