The egg donation industry is bracing themselves for a legal battle in light of the recent filing of a class action lawsuit against the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), the Society for Reproductive Technology (SART) and Pacific Fertility Center.

The lawsuit, filed by egg donor Lindsay Kamakahi challenges an alleged price fixing of the human egg donation market, a violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. This allegation cites the ethical guidelines set forth by the ASRM which recommends that compensation for a human egg donor be capped at $10,00 USD.

Robyn Nazar, fertility nurse and medical commentator explains in an written summary of the egg donor lawsuit,

“According to the present lawsuit, the ARSM and SART represent more than 85% of the nation’s fertility clinics and members are expected to adhere to the guidelines as set forth by the organizations. Failure to do so would cause them to loose their membership and possibly their clients. Therefore, Ms. Kamakahi’s argument is that these guidelines have created a price fixing on the egg donation industry, making it not only anti-competitive, but artificially low. Her argument also asserts that as a direct result fertility clinics are pocketing additional profits that otherwise would have been passed on to donors.”

The ASRM issued a formal acknowledgment of this egg donation lawsuit in an email to its members on May 6, 2011. This email was also made available on their website.

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