Mrs Justice Lieven said in her judgment that MacDougall's children, born after he advertised on a social media page for lesbian women seeking sperm donors, are currently aged between three and a few months old. In a highly unusual move, the judge also said Mr MacDougall should be named to stop other women from using him as a sperm donor. Now a judge, Mrs Justice Lieven, sitting at Derby, has ruled that he should not have parental responsibility for the children, because it would cause harm to them. Three mothers opposed Mr MacDougall's response. Mr MacDougall's donations were today revealed as part of a Family Court battle in which he had hoped would result in him having access to four of the children he had fathered.ĭespite originally signing an agreement saying he did not want any contact with some of the children, MacDougall applied to the courts for parental responsibility orders, and child arrangements orders, allowing him to spend time with four of his children. The genetic condition, which is inheritable, leads to low IQ and developmental delay and cannot be cured. James MacDougall, 37, went ahead with private sperm donations despite knowing that he suffered from Fragile X syndrome.
A sperm donor who offered his services via social media fathered fifteen children to lesbian women without telling them about his inheritable condition, a court today heard.
