US: Kansas sperm donor asks judge for ruling in his favour without trial
A Kansas man who was previously ordered to pay child support for a child born through sperm he donated to a lesbian couple, has asked for the judge in his case to make a ruling in his favour without a trial.
Mr Marotta and the couple he donated to did not use official channels, and instead met up using the website Craigslist, and wrote up their own agreement.
Because the US state of Kansas did not have a legal way for same-sex couples to marry, when the couple split up, the Kansas Department of Children and Families sought out the biological father of the child, Mr Marotta, for child support.
The court clerk’s office at Shawnee County District Court issued subpoenas on Wednesday for Angela Bauer and Jennifer L Schreiner, the separated lesbian couple, the mothers of the child, according to the agreement.
An attorney acting on behalf of Mr Marotta said that the department demanding that he pay child support was asking the court to do “what no court has ever done”, by concluding that a sperm donor was the father of a child, when neither the donor or recipient was demanding that.
Back in May, Timothy Keck, a co-counsel for the state, filed a motion saying that the agreement between Mr Marotta and the couple was not valid.
Mr Marotta’s attorney argued that this was not the case, and that the judge should rule in his favour, and that he should be protected as other sperm donors are.
The next action to take place in the case will be a hearing on 13 August.
