The High Court has ruled against a 43-year-old woman who sought to become a single mother using a semen donation from Jewish-American Mathematics Professes Ari Nagel.It made the decision on Wednesday on the grounds that "it's doubtful he [Nagel] can function as an actual father."
Nagel, known to the court as a serial sperm donor, has already fathered 35 children by various women, as well as three children with his wife - making him the biological father of no less than 38 children.
The court ruled that such a great number of children "leads to a real and serious concern about the ability of the petitioner to actually serve as the father to over 38 children, both financially and in the essence of what a father's rule is within the family."
Sperm donation in Israel must be done anonymously, unless the male donor signs documents saying he will co-parent with the mother.
In 2017, Nagel deposited his semen in six different sperm banks and filled joint requests with seven women who asked to become mothers by him.The amount of requests, the court said, create a false presentation of facts. Nagel doesn't mean to function as a father to these children, yet he claims to want to in these documents.
The court also pointed out that under law, there is a duty between the father and the child which is independent of the mother, and that leaving the mother with sole authority to determine the extent of fatherhood as in this case, is unacceptable.