Overview
- The plaintiff filed a civil claim seeking ¥11,000,000 against the medical corporation that runs a Kyoto infertility clinic, arguing the hospital’s verification procedures were negligent.
- The couple began treatment in January 2020, the partners separated in January 2022, and the wife used third-party sperm that led to a child born in August 2023 who is not biologically related to the plaintiff.
- On June 3 the Kyoto District Court held the first oral hearing and the clinic asked for the claim to be dismissed, saying there were no signs that the consent form was forged or that the sperm was not authentic.
- The wife was criminally convicted for forging the husband’s consent and received a one year, six month prison term with a three-year suspended sentence, and the plaintiff remains the registered father and has been paying support.
- Medical groups advise confirming consent for each embryo transfer but have no clear mandatory rules for verifying a spouse’s identity, and the case could prompt legal scrutiny of clinic checks and patient safeguards.