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Take ActionColorado Donor Insemination Law
Colorado law allows unmarried women to undergo artificial insemination and does not require physician supervision. The law states explicitly that the donor is not the father of the child. However, if the donor is known to the woman, he may be able to assert parental rights unless the parties have explicitly agreed otherwise.
Cases Dealing with Donor Insemination. In one 1989 case, In the Interest of R.C., an unmarried woman became pregnant via artificial insemination, using semen obtained from a male acquaintance. The parties disputed the nature of the arrangement that led to the semen donation, including whether the donor would have any parental involvement. The Supreme Court of Colorado found that the artificial insemination law did not apply to this situation because the Legislature contemplated a situation involving a married couple and a third-party donor. The court concluded that the law did not preclude an unmarried woman from being inseminated, but that a known donor might still have parental rights. The court sent the case back to a lower court to determine the nature of the agreement between the mother and the donor.
Citations: COLO. REV. STAT. § 19-4-106 (2003); In the Interest of R.C., 775 P.2d 27 (Colo. 1989).
Updated: Sun, August 29, 2004 - 11:00:00
