Donor conception and co-parenting law pages
Welcome to our donor conception and co-parenting law pages, where you can find a wealth of resources on the legal implications of donor conception and co-parenting, put together by the UK's leading fertility solicitors. There is information here for lesbian couples, single women, married and unmarried couples, donors and co-parents, donor conceived people and fertility professionals.
Read our detailed legal advice on donor conception and co-parenting law - use the links on the left
Read articles and publications about donor conception and co-parenting law
Read the UK's fertility laws which govern parenthood in assisted conception situations
Access the court forms you may need
Read press and media stories about donor conception and co-parenting law, here and on our blog
Find other websites with useful information about donor conception and co-parenting law
Donor conception and co-parenting law: published articles
We are often asked to write about donor conception and co-parenting law topics. If you are interested in getting an overview of the law and the issues it raises, our publications are a great place to start.
Fertility tourism: what you need to know from a legal perspective - Natalie Gamble (Infertility Network UK magazine, Winter 2010)
Parenthood for same sex couples - Stonewall publication, December 2009
Two mums and a baby - Natalie Gamble (Infertility Network UK magazine, October 2009)
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008: Revolution or Evolution? - Natalie Gamble and Louisa Ghevaert (Family Law, August 2009)
The Changing Face of Parenthood - Louisa Ghevaert (Family Law Journal, July/August 2009)
Pregnant pause: a guide for lesbians on how to get pregnant - Stonewall publication, July 2009
UK donor conception laws:
UK law has special rules which govern the parenthood of children conceived artificially. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 put in place laws to protect heterosexual parents conceiving with donor eggs or sperm, and these rules still apply in respect of children conceived artificially before 6 April 2009. From 6 April 2009, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 updated these rules and gave new rights to lesbian parents conceiving together. Both Acts also contain detailed rules governing how information about donor conception at UK fertility clinics is stored and made accessible to donor conceived people, their parents and donors.
You can read the legislation itself below, or use the links on the left to find out how the law works in practice.
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (see sections 27-29) - parenthood rules for children conceived before 6 April 2009
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 (see sections 33-53) - parenthood rules for children conceived on or after 6 April 2009
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 (see section 24) - rights to information about donor conception
Donor conception law: useful court forms
If you are not automatically recognised as a parent of your child (for example, a lesbian non-birth mother of a child conceived before 6 April 2009), these are the court forms you may need to apply for parental responsibility or adoptive parenthood. There is more information in our guidance (see the links on the left) to help you find out how to use these forms.
Step parent parental responsibility agreement form
If you would like help completing these forms, or want to know more about the process involved, use the links on the left to find out more, or contact us for legal advice on your particular situation.
Donor conception and co-parenting law in the news:
As the UK's leading fertility law solicitors, we often comment on donor conception stories in the national press. Sometimes leading cases we have acted on are also reported (although only where our clients consent or where the case is of such public importance that it is reported anonymously by the courts).
Daddies be damned (feature on solo mothers) - Daily Mail, 31 October 2009
Same sex partners to be named on birth certificates from tomorrow - (Radio 5 Live interview with Natalie Gamble, 31 August 2009)
Power 50: Britain's most influential women - (Diva, August 2009)
Also see our media archive which includes (among other coverage):
Pinknews, 6 October 2008 - Stonewall awards attract top names to V&A ceremony (by Tony Grew) - Natalie Gamble nominated as Stonewall Hero of the Year
The Guardian, 11 May 2008 - Pro-life MPs threaten access to IVF (Robin McKie)
The Times, January 15 2008 - Lawyer of the week: Natalie Gamble (following representation of Andy Bathie, the sperm donor pursued by the CSA for maintenance)
BBC Radio 4 Today Programme, 19 November 2007 - John Humphrys interview with Natalie Gamble and Baroness Deech on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill (defending the new rights for lesbian parents)
Other donor conception websites with useful information:
There is lots of information available on the web, and it isn't always easy to know what to rely on. The following are the websites of major UK charities and organisations which contain information about donor conception and co-parenting.
Donor Conception Network - a leading and long established UK charity committed to supporting donor conceived families, particularly with issues of openness and communication with donor conceived children.
National Gamete Donation Trust - a charity dedicated to recruiting and supporting egg and sperm donors.
UK Donorlink - a charity which supports donor conceived people and helps them make contact with genetic relatives.
Stonewall - the UK's leading gay rights charity, which provides advice and support to gay and lesbian people across the UK on a range of issues, including parenting and conception, and which has lobbied successfully for equal legal treatment.
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) - the UK's regulatory body for fertility treatment, which oversees licensed fertility clinics in the UK.
Fertility Friends - a massive online community of fertility patients and prospective parents, where people building families share information and support via online forums.
Infertility Network UK - a leading UK charity which provides support with all aspects of fertility treatment, including donor conception.
British Infertility Counselling Association - the UK's professional association of fertility treatment counsellors.
Donor conception and co-parenting law: how can we help?
Gamble and Ghevaert has unrivalled practical and legal experience helping clients to navigate the complex law on donor conception and co-parenting, offering both legal and family building advice. As well as working with many individuals and families, we work closely with Stonewall, the Donor Conception Network and other leading charities working in the field of donor conception, and have been at the forefront of the new rules in the HFE Act 2008 introducing legal equality for same sex parents conceiving together.
If you would like further information or advice on your particular circumstances please contact us. We can help with:
- legal advice on entering into and managing a known donor or co-parenting arrangement,
- legal advice on tricky legal situations, including parents in complex marital situations,
- practical guidance on navigating the fertility sector and weighing up the range of options available if you are considering building a family through donor conception or co-parenting,
- preparing donor and co-parenting agreements (including multi-national situations),
- providing legal representation in disputes involving parenting donor conceived children,
- advising fertility clinics, charities and other professionals on the legal implications of dealing with donor conception or co-parenting arrangements,
- drafting specialist wills to protect families created through donor conception or co-parenting.
