Should donor-conceived children have the right to know the identity of their donors? Should intended parents have the right to choose the sex of their prospective children? How should the suitability of an intended surrogate mother be assessed? These are the vexing questions asked in fertility law.
Since the advent of medically assisted reproduction to assist infertile people to have children, a new discipline has emerged under the broader umbrella of reproductive law that focuses on the legal aspects of medically assisted reproduction: fertility law. This new discipline must keep pace with new assisted reproductive technologies that are being developed, and with society’s changing conception of the ‘family’.
Here are my five most recent academic contributions to the dynamic world of fertility law:
Egg donors’ motivations, experiences, and opinions: A survey of egg donors in South Africa. PLOS ONE. 2020.
Criteria for assessing the suitability of intended surrogate mothers in South Africa: Reflections on Ex Parte KAF II. South African Journal of Bioethics and Law. 2019.
Is it time to reconsider the ban on non-therapeutic pre-implantation sex selection? South African Law Journal. 2019.
The need to develop objective criteria for suitability as a surrogate mother: Reflections on Ex Parte KAF. South African Journal of Bioethics and Law. 2018.
Posthumous conception: Recent legal developments in South Africa. South African Medical Journal. 2018.
I have served as legal counsel in some of the most impactful fertility law cases in South Africa. These include, among others, AB v Minister of Social Development (the genetic link requirement for surrogacy), Ex Parte KAF II (the criteria for suitability as a surrogate mother), NC v Aevitas (posthumous reproduction), and most recently QG v CS (the enforceability of a sperm donor agreement).
Donrich Thaldar 