A British Court rejected the request made by Freddy McConnell, a transgender, to be listed as his child’s biological father.
McConnell who works at The Guardian as a multimedia journalist was listed as female at birth, but began transitioning in 2013 and decided to stop his testosterone regimen in 2016 for the purpose of conceiving.
He became pregnant in 2017 using donor sperm and gave birth the following year. His documentary “Seahorse: The Dad Who Gave Birth” which came out this year chronicles the journey of his pregnancy as a trans man.
McConnell asked to be listed on his child’s birth certificate as the father to conform to his gender identity. However, his request was denied, which compelled him to seek a judicial review at the country’s highest family court.
Sir Andrew McFarlane, president of the High Court’s family division, in a Wednesday ruling supported the decision taken by the registrar to not list McConnell as the baby’s father, and instead to be listed as the mother.
McFarlane stated that “Being a ‘mother’ or a ‘father’ with respect to the conception, pregnancy and birth of a child is not necessarily gender specific. There is a material difference between a person’s gender and their status as a parent.”
The ruling is the first representation of a mother’s legal definition in English common law.
