A man with an incurable genetic disease who advertised his lesbian sperm on social media has been banned from contacting some of his children as a result.
A family court judge took the unusual step of naming James MacDougall after finding that he “took advantage of the vulnerability of these young women and their strong desire to have children.”
Judge Lieven said there was “a very specific benefit to being appointed with the hope that women will look it up on the internet and watch this trial.”
MacDougall, 37, has Fragile X Syndrome, a genetic disorder that causes a number of developmental problems, such as learning difficulties and cognitive impairment. The judge described him as “a complex person” who has been diagnosed with learning difficulties and is on the autism spectrum.
The family court heard that it placed an ad as a potential sperm donor on a social media page for lesbian women seeking donors. He claims that he ended up having 15 children as a result, all between almost four and a few months old, some of whom applied to the court for parental responsibility or contact with them.
Three of the mothers vehemently oppose MacDougall having anything to do with four children she had fathered. They were all in their twenties and had lesbian relationships when they became pregnant; one has learning difficulties and “has appeared extremely vulnerable” in the courts, the judge said.
Doctors have shown significant concern for the development of one of the children, who is not yet three years old and is “a behavioral challenge.” The Sheffield Children’s Services Department is investigating allegations that MacDougall caused bruises on another of the children, according to the court.
Lieven found MacDougall to be “fundamentally irresponsible” for not being honest about his condition, which prevented him from being a sperm donor through a regulated clinic.
It was mentioned in at least two of the legal agreements signed by the mothers but without any explanation of the consequences of the fragile X. But the agreement was a “very spaced three-page document in very legalistic language that is difficult to read even for a lawyer,” the judge said.
One of the mothers said she had difficulty reading and did not reach page three of the agreement, which stated the condition. Another mother said she read more of the document, but did not see or appreciate the importance of the reference to the fragile X.
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“Although the agreement refers to the fragile X, [MacDougall] did not take any action to explain the condition [the women] and there are no measures to make sure they understand. [He] they took advantage of the vulnerability of these young women and their strong desire to have children.
“This failure to take charge of their own condition and to have any apparent concern about the long-term impact on both mothers and their children is a factor in concluding that [he] children should not be given parental responsibility, “the judge said.
Lieven said the women were irresponsible about using MacDougall as a sperm donor without making the right inquiries about their health history, but they were desperate for the children.
She rejected MacDougall’s request for parental responsibility and contact with children, and allowed him to be told, saying: “I have no confidence that he will not act as a sperm donor in the future.
“I also don’t trust him to fully explain to any woman the true implications of his fragile X syndrome. So there is a very specific benefit to being appointed with the hope that women will look for him on the Internet and see judges “.