Attorney: Kansas law on sperm donors outdated
By JOHN HANNA Associated Press January 3, 2013 11:56AM
William Marotta, who is being asked by the state of Kansas to pay child support after providing sperm to a same-sex couple, speaks about his ordeal at his attorney's office in Topeka, Kan. on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Angela Bauer told The Topeka Capital-Journal on Saturday that she and her former partner, Jennifer Schreiner, are "kind of at a loss" about the Kansas Department for Children and Families' recent decision to file a child support claim against William Marotta. Marotta provided sperm that was used to artificially inseminate Schreiner three years ago. (AP Photo/The Topeka Capital Journal, Jeff Davis)
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TOPEKA, Kan. — An attorney who’s trying to prevent a Kansas sperm donor from having to pay child support for a girl who was ultimately conceived says a state law dealing with artificial insemination is outdated.
Lawyer Ben Swinnen of Topeka noted Thursday that a national group proposed in 2002 that states adopt laws saying no sperm or egg donor is legally the parent of a child conceived through artificial reproduction.
Kansas law says a sperm donor is not considered a child’s parent if a doctor is involved in the artificial insemination.
Swinnen represents 46-year-old Topeka resident William Marotta, who donated sperm to a lesbian couple in 2009. No physician was involved, and the state filed a lawsuit in October to try to force Marotta to pay child support.
