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Chapter 12 - Knowing Origins

from Part III - Institutionalised Resistance to Openness

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 July 2023

By
Naomi Cahn
Edited by
Fiona Kelly ,
Deborah Dempsey  and
Adrienne Byrt
Fiona Kelly
Affiliation:
La Trobe University, Victoria
Deborah Dempsey
Affiliation:
Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria
Adrienne Byrt
Affiliation:
Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria
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Summary

This chapter traces the development of donor-conception regulation in the United States. It shows the evolution of laws concerning anonymity, addressing how the legal and pragmatic contexts for nondisclosure are changing, and it also points out that the feasibility of promising anonymity to donors is no longer viable. As sperm and egg banks increasingly offer the possibility of identity release donors, as genetic testing becomes more widespread, as donor-conceived people strengthen their advocacy, and as other countries end anonymity, new legal approaches are developing in the United States. The law is beginning to respond to the interests of donor-conceived people. The questions moving forward thus become how best to counsel donors, the intending parent(s), and donor-conceived offspring about their options, and how best to respond to emerging reproductive technologies.

Keywords

donor identity disclosureUnited Statesgametesanonymity
Type
Chapter
Information
Donor-Linked Families in the Digital Age
Relatedness and Regulation
 , pp. 211 - 228
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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  • Knowing Origins
  • Edited by Fiona Kelly, La Trobe University, Victoria, Deborah Dempsey, Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria, Adrienne Byrt, Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria
  • Book: Donor-Linked Families in the Digital Age
  • Online publication: 13 July 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009008129.016
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  • Knowing Origins
  • Edited by Fiona Kelly, La Trobe University, Victoria, Deborah Dempsey, Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria, Adrienne Byrt, Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria
  • Book: Donor-Linked Families in the Digital Age
  • Online publication: 13 July 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009008129.016
Available formats
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To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Knowing Origins
  • Edited by Fiona Kelly, La Trobe University, Victoria, Deborah Dempsey, Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria, Adrienne Byrt, Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria
  • Book: Donor-Linked Families in the Digital Age
  • Online publication: 13 July 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009008129.016
Available formats
×