Rogue sperm donor, father of 180, denied spot on child's birth certificate

A prolific sperm donor who claims to have fathered 180 children around the world has been denied his name being placed on one of his children's birth certificates by the Family Court.

Robert Albon, who operates under the name Joe Donor and advertises on Facebook and Instagram, offers sperm donation services through several unlicensed methods.

He applied to the Family Court for a declaration of parentage after discovering that a couple to whom he had donated sperm had named the mother's partner as the father on the baby's birth certificate.

Sir Andrew McFarlane, the Family Court's top judge, dismissed Albon's application, describing the case's facts as "extreme". It is accepted that Albon, a man in his 50s originally from the United States, is the biological father of the child.

The child's mother was in a same-sex relationship at the time of conception but was not married. The couple paid Albon £100 in cash and a £150 Amazon gift card before the mother became pregnant via artificial insemination.

By the time the child was born, the mother's partner had begun identifying as a transgender man and was registered as the father on the birth certificate.

The couple stated they never wanted Albon to be involved in the child's life but intended to explain the child's origins in an age-appropriate manner when the time was right.

While it is rare for parents to be publicly named in Family Court cases to protect children, BBC Wales successfully applied to lift the restriction on naming Albon, citing public interest. This was due to his open advertising on social media and extensive media interviews, including a 2024 interview with The Sun where he described having his own "sperm factory" and women paying him hundreds of pounds for his sperm.

Albon, who is adopted, argued in court documents that not knowing his birth parents' identity and possessing what he considers an incorrect birth certificate himself had "eroded his sense of self". He stated he wished to prevent the same from happening to this child, clarifying he was not seeking responsibility or time with the child.

However, Sir Andrew indicated that Albon might "seek to assert himself as an active parent", as he had done previously. The judge noted that Albon's motivations would be "entirely self-driven" without consideration for the mother's feelings.

A court report detailed that the proceedings caused the child's mother "considerable anxiety" and described it as the "hardest experience of her life". Sir Andrew acknowledged that the mother was "vulnerable", both in her personal resources and her situation concerning Albon. He dismissed Albon's application on the grounds that granting it would be "manifestly be contrary to public policy".

This marks the third judgment from the Family Courts concerning the legal parentage of children involving sperm donated by Albon.

In a 2023 judgment, published in February 2025, Albon's application to be named on another child's birth certificate and to change its surname to his was rejected by Jonathan Furness KC. Furness ruled it was not in the child's best interests and aimed to "protect women from the potential consequences of unregulated sperm donorship generally, but also from Joe Donor himself".

At a fact-finding hearing, Furness stated Albon had initiated legal proceedings to support his immigration status in the UK. In May 2025, another judgment was published where Albon's application for custody of two children was denied by Mr Justice Poole, who stated Albon "seeks to control others to prove that he is right, to secure recognition, to get his own way and to serve his own ends".

Sir Andrew clarified that his recent judgment does not imply all future applications by unregulated sperm donors to be recognised as fathers will be dismissed.

Albon's method of sperm donation is unregulated as it is not conducted through a licensed clinic. This means there are no health checks, legal safeguards preventing donors from claiming parental rights, or limits on the number of children conceived using a single donor's sperm. UK regulations mandate that sperm from a single donor at licensed clinics can only be used to create a maximum of 10 families.