Surrogacy in the UK
Fisher Jones Greenwood LLP
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Surrogacy is an arrangement where the person who carries and gives birth to the child is not intended to be the child’s legal parent after birth.
At Fisher Jones Greenwood we understand that not all families are the same.? Surrogacy may become an important way of creating a family, be it in an opposite sex relationship, a same sex relationship or a relationship with more than one person.
It is always important to seek legal advice at an early stage on the arrangements necessary to determine who is intended to be a child’s legal parents and who is intended to have parental responsibility for a child.
Surrogacy is legal in the UK but the law provides that commercial surrogacy agreements are a criminal offence.
The person who carries the child will be the legal mother under the Section 27(1) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990. ?If that person is married, their spouse or civil partner may be the child’s other legal parent.
After a child has been born, it may be possible to transfer legal parenthood from the legal parent(s) to the intended parent(s). However, doing so requires a court application for a Parental Order.
There are time limits, and other legal requirements that must be met in order for the court to grant a Parental Order, including that the child must be biologically linked to one of the intended parent(s); that the legal parent(s) need to give their full and informed consent, and that no transfer of money or benefits (other than reasonable expenses) was made to anyone involved. ?Please note that this is not an exhaustive list and there are other requirements which may need to be met.? There are also legal implications with regard to estates on death and inheritance rights, which is why it is very important to obtain legal advice at an early stage, preferably before the child is conceived.
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If a Parental Order is made by the court, the child’s birth certificate is re-issued with the intended parent(s) name(s) and the surrogate parent(s) legal parenthood and parental responsibility for the child will be extinguished.
The Law Commission of England and Wales presented a report and draft bill to Parliament in respect of proposed reform to the law around surrogacy in March 2023. Further information can be found at the following link:
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We will blog any further updates in due course.
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At Fisher Jones Greenwood, our team of family law experts have a wealth of experience in dealing with children and family matters and provide clear advice to guide you through this process. If you would like advice about children or family disputes, please contact our Family Team at 01206 700113 or email [email protected].