This blog is crosss posted with permission from It’s Conceivable

Guest Post By Diana Adams, Esq, Attorney and Mediator

Adams is a trusted Center partner and supporter of our Center Families Program.

Many families today seek artificial insemination from a sperm donor, including lesbian couples, single women, and heterosexual couples in which the male does not have viable sperm. Despite the availability of sperm banks, many women prefer to collaborate with a male friend. In this situation of ‘informal sperm donation’, a Sperm Donor Agreement is essential.

A Sperm Donor Agreement is a contract between the sperm donor and the person seeking to use that donor’s sperm for insemination purposes, without using a sperm bank as intermediary. The primary purpose of this document is to clearly identify that although the sperm donor is the biological father, he intends to sever all legal rights and responsibilities of fatherhood, including visitation access, all decisions about the child’s health, religion, schooling, or anything else, responsibilities for child support, and any other care or support of the child.

Swept up in the excitement of planning parenthood, potential parents and a potential donor may not speak in detail about their expectations of the donor’s role. As with a romance, people often rush past important stages of trust-building and negotiation. The discussion and reflection involved in crafting a well-meditated agreement will help prevent future misunderstandings and disappointments.

For instance, everyone must be in agreement about the role of the sperm donor in the child’s life, if any. A lesbian couple may choose a sperm donor who is a relative of the woman not intended to give birth, so that the child will be related by blood to both women. In other instances, a trusted friend may be

This article originally appeared on: http://www.gaycenter.org/centerblog/2012-01-30-sperm-donor-agreements-essential-information-for-parents-and-donors/