8. Birth Certificates Become More Complicated

 

So, you have just found a birth certificate to authenticate the birth of one of your relatives.  Well, birth certificates are becoming a more complicated arena for genealogists.

 

The top court in Quebec, Canada (circa 2022) has reversed a Canadian Federal Superior Court decision that put a sperm donor's name on his child's birth certificate at the expense of a non-biological parent. The name of a sperm donor will now be removed from his child's birth certificate following a recent Quebec Court of Appeals decision.  In the case of Family X, the sperm donor to a lesbian couple sought to have his name included on the birth certificate.  In May 2018, a lower court agreed to his request and ordered the name of the non-biological parent removed from the document and replaced with the sperm donor's. 

 

These announcements raise a host of questions for genealogists including:

1. Does my family history software accommodate three parents?
2. What are the legislative requirements for birth certificate information in my state or province?
3. How do I know whether the father on any of my collection of birth certificates is the family “father” or the sperm donor? 

And you thought that genealogy was simple?  Maybe not. 

Learn more about birth certificates and other proof documents for your family tree by joining your local genealogical society.

Ron Gilmore

Email:         rvg3@me.com

Website:     https://www.rgenealogy.ca