Considering Surrogacy or Becoming a Surrogate?

Find out More with our Surrogacy Attorney

Some states and countries do not have any laws that specifically mention surrogacy, but there are other parenting laws that one must take into consideration when contemplating starting a family using a surrogate. A surrogacy lawyer such as the surrogacy attorney at Steven H. Snyder & Associates is well versed in the complications of surrogacy and its many contracts and legal documents.

Because there are often no set surrogacy laws, whether the surrogacy is traditional or gestational, the intended parent or parents need to formally adopt the child. The surrogate must terminate her parental rights to the child.

Risks

There are some risks involved with surrogacy. While all parties are allegedly covered under contracts, the surrogate may change her mind and not terminate parental rights. The Courts could handle this in one of two ways:

• Review the matter under contract law
• Decide that such a contact is unenforceable based on the adoption laws or public policy

Traditional Surrogacy

Traditional surrogacy is when a “surrogate” mother bears a child for other parents. Traditional surrogacy uses the surrogate’s own egg. She has the father’s sperm artificially inseminated into her. The surrogate is the biological mother of the baby. The surrogate must terminate her parental rights to the child, and the potential mother must adopt the baby.

Agreements and Terms

Surrogacy agreements must be drafted to comply with existing family planning and parenting laws. A qualified surrogacy attorney at Steven H. Snyder & Associates is current on the existing adoption statutes and drafts the surrogacy agreement. The surrogacy agreement covers:

• The biological parents’ rights
• STD testing for the surrogate and biological parents
• Medical evaluations
• Psychological counseling for the surrogate mother
• Determination of parental rights or contract for adoption
• Confidentiality agreement
• Compensation agreements for the surrogate mother
• Other terms and conditions as to how and when the agreement is terminated

If the surrogacy involves co-parenting, a co-parenting agreement is also included in the surrogacy agreement.

If you are considering donating your embryo, considering becoming a surrogate, or looking into surrogacy options, please contact an embryo donation lawyer and surrogacy attorney at Steven H. Snyder & Associates today.