Thursday, April 10, 2014

[UK] - "Surrogacy: 10 things you should know" by Claire Wood, Lawyer, Kingsley Napley LLP

Same-sex marriage may now be legal, but surrogacy remains a legal minefield in the UK.

Surrogacy is an increasingly popular route to parenthood for gay couples, enabling them to have a child genetically connected to one of them.  UK based couples should, however, be fully aware of the legal implications (at home and abroad) before embarking on the surrogacy journey.

Here are my top ten need-to-know pointers if you are considering surrogacy:

1. The  availability of surrogates in the  UK is limited – in part due to the legal restrictions on advertising  for surrogacy.
2. Surrogacy contracts/agreements are NOT enforceable in the UK.
3. Because  of the limitations of surrogacy in the UK, many couples go abroad.  There is an ever increasing number of  countries with surrogacy industries. The most popular, gay friendly, surrogacy market continues to be California   in the US, but Thailand and Mexico also offer surrogacy for gay  couples.  India and Russia do not allow gay surrogacy.  It is critical  to research the particular  country’s views on gay surrogacy BEFORE you enter into an arrangement  in that country.

Read More at FyneTimes

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