header-logo header-logo

Family: The surrogacy journey

02 September 2020 / Fiona Lyon
Issue: 7900 / Categories: Features , Family , Covid-19
printer mail-detail
26578
Fiona Lyon discusses the legal & practical steps for modern families in surrogacy arrangements
  • Pathway to surrogacy.
  • Criteria.
  • Parental orders.
  • COVID-19 and international surrogacy.
  • Caselaw update.

Surrogacy arrangements date back to biblical times but gained real potential after 1978 when the first baby was conceived via IVF. This innovation pioneered further medical advances in the field of childbirth. In 1982, the first baby was born via egg donation and the first gestational surrogacy was achieved in 1985, with no genetic link between birth mother and baby. However, surrogacy gained bad press early on following the controversial surrogacy case of ‘Baby M’ in the US in the mid-1980s. This was a case where the surrogate had a biological link to the baby and refused to relinquish her parenthood following the birth. A two-year custody battle ensued with the intended parents being granted custody and the surrogate having visitation rights. This is, fortunately, a rare occurrence.

The growth of surrogacy arrangements has increased dramatically over recent years, with the oldest

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Mourant—Stephen Alexander

Mourant—Stephen Alexander

Jersey litigation lead appointed to global STEP Council

mfg Solicitors—nine trainees

mfg Solicitors—nine trainees

Firm invests in future talent with new training cohort

360 Law Group—Anthony Gahan

360 Law Group—Anthony Gahan

Investment banking veteran appointed as chairman to drive global growth

NEWS
Artificial intelligence may be revolutionising the law, but its misuse could wreck cases and careers, warns Clare Arthurs of Penningtons Manches Cooper in this week's NLJ
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve reports on Haynes v Thomson, the first judicial application of the Supreme Court’s For Women Scotland ruling in a discrimination claim, in this week's NLJ
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
back-to-top-scroll