Pre conception contracts

Posted on 13/02/2012

This is the baby version of the pe-nuptual agreement. Three Appeal Court Judges are currently considering a case between a man who agreed to donate sperm to his lesbian ex-wife and her partner. The child was born and he had some contact with the child. He would now like extending that to overnight and holiday contact. The parents (the lesbian couple ) have told the court that they feel betrayed because prior to the conception it had been agreed that there would be no such contact.

This is one of the many examples of the complicated family lives that we now lead and it’s not that unusual. Think of Elton John and his partner with their children born to a surrogate mother and Charlie Condon the Coronation Street actor who has two children with his boyfriend and their female friend. I have been involved recently in two cases like this in the North West where there were disputes following conception as to where the boundary is to the birth parent having contact. So should you go down the route of having a contractual agreement to sort this out before even the child is born?

Being a parent is a wonderful gift. Children bring joy, heartache and headaches to any parent depending on their age. The courts I suspect will be very unwilling to give effect to any contract if they think the agreement goes against the paramount interests of the child. Children have a right to know their parents. It should only be overruled if when balancing all the factors it is deemed that it would be positively harmful for the child or so effect the child’s other relationships that it is not feasible. So I suspect a written agreement would be evidence only of an intention and it will be one factor to be considered in that light.

So if you need a sperm donor, its probably best to go down the anonymous route and take a chance on the donor or accept that there may be 3 parents on your child’s life and allow the child to know the 3rd parent warts and all! If you need a woman to carry your baby then there are formal surrogacy arrangements that can be set up or do apply to be adoptive parents where parental roles are more clearly defined.

We can give you advice about any existing family law difficulty or discuss how you can try and protect an agreement about any future family arrangement. Please telephone and ask to speak to Helen Broughton or a member of her team. Legal aid may be available or we can discuss the availability of a fixed fee consultation .

Helen Broughton

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Pre conception contracts

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