Sperm donor who allegedly fathered 550 children faces legal action

Legal action is being taken against a Netherlands sperm donor to prevent him from having further children.

The Hague resident, 41, is accused of fathering at least 550 children worldwide.

The action is being brought by a lady who had a kid in 2018 using his given sperm, along with the Donorkind Foundation, a group that defends the rights of donor children.

According to the foundation, the man, who goes by the name Jonathan M. in the Dutch media, has donated his sperm to at least 13 clinics both domestically and abroad.

To avoid incest relationships and safeguard the mental health of donor children, guidelines provide that one person may donate sperm for up to 25 children, or 12 families.

"If I had known he had already fathered more than a hundred children, I would never have chosen this donor," the mother who launched the proceedings against him said in a statement. 

"When I think about the consequences this can have for my child, I get a feeling of [the] gut and I become insecure about his future: how many more children are added?"

"Going to court is the only way to protect my child," she continued.  

Since it was revealed that he had more than a hundred donor children, the man was already on a blacklist in the Netherlands in 2017.

At the time, all sperm banks and clinics were instructed to stop using his sperm immediately by the Dutch Association of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (NVOG).

Jonathan M. is suspected of continuing to donate overseas and through unauthorized means.

According to the Donorkind foundation, the donor contacts potential mothers via social media and offers his sperm for sale.

According to allegations, he lied about how many children he has fathered through sperm banks.

The donor broke agreements with the clinics and the prospective parents, who depended on his promise to only conceive up to 25 children, according to the foundation's attorney Mark de Hek.

"The donor prioritised his urge to reproduce and his conduct poses a threat to the mental and physical well-being of donor children," said de Hek. 

Jonathan M., who now resides in Kenya, declined to offer any comments regarding the legal actions taken against him.