Surrogacy Agreements
A surrogate is a woman who carries and delivers a baby for an aspiring parent or couple. There are two types of surrogacies, namely traditional and gestational. In gestational surrogacy, the baby is not conceived using the surrogate’s egg. Rather, the embryo is created using the sperm from the intended father or sperm donor and the egg of the intended mother or egg donor. This embryo is then implanted into the surrogate’s uterus, who will then carry the baby to full term. In traditional surrogacy, the sperm of the intended father is used to fertilize the surrogate’s egg. The surrogate mother carries the pregnancy to term for the intended parents.
Surrogacy agreements are a great way of protecting parenting rights. A surrogacy agreement refers to a written agreement between a surrogate and one or more persons respecting a child to be carried by the surrogate. In this type of agreement, the surrogate agrees not to be the parent of the child and each of the parties to the agreement agree to be a parent of the child. If certain conditions are met, intended parents who are parties to a surrogacy agreement may be recognized as legal parents without a court order.
Additionally, a surrogate is required to provide written consent relinquishing her parental status after the child is seven days old. If the surrogate refuses to provide consent after the baby’s birth, the parties can bring an application to the court respecting the child’s parentage.
Surrogacy can be a complicated area to navigate. At Melekhovets Law, we understand the importance of drafting accurate and effective surrogacy agreements. Contact us today to learn more about how we can assist you.