THE Queensland Supreme Court has made the morally and ethically correct decision not to allow a Mackay woman to obtain her dead fiance’s sperm so that she can bear a child.
The rights and best interests of a prospective child are paramount in such a case.
The woman involved, Simone Baker, 29, was asking the court to ignore the rights of both her dead fiance and the prospective child, two key voices which, under the circumstances, cannot be heard in a court of law.
At the same time, it is important to note that the dead man had not given prior consent to the use of his sperm in the event of his death. It cannot be presumed that because the couple wanted to get married and have children that the fiance, Andrew Clough, would want his child to grow up without him as the father.
The days after the loss of a loved one are highly emotional, but rational heads need to prevail in considering the rights of a prospective child, or even children. Thankfully that is what the court has done.
