First things first-out of 15,000 surrogacy arrangements that were
reported through 2002, only 88 resulted in any dispute between parties. (That’s
an overall dispute rate of only approximately one-half of one percent, or
.005.) The surprising part of this statistic is that only 23 of the disputes
involved a surrogate who wanted to change her mind, while 65 involved an
intended parent who wanted to change his or her mind. These informal
statistics draws attention to the fact that a complete surrogacy agreement must
contemplate not only what happens if a surrogate changes her mind, must also
contemplate what happens if an intended parent changes his or her mind.
The legal answer as to what a court will do if a surrogate or
intended parent changes his or her mind varies from state to state depending on
the individual statutes and case law (court decisions) of each state. Thus,
there may be 50 different answers to that question, and such a discussion is
beyond the scope of this blog. However, a complete analysis of the specific laws of the state in which
the surrogate resides, with the
assistance and advice of an attorney licensed to practice in that state and
experienced in surrogacy, is important.
The contractual answer as to what will happen if either party
changes his or her mind about the agreement is much more straightforward.
The terms of the surrogacy agreement as
to what happens if either party breaches the agreement are well within the
control of the respective parties and their separate attorneys. First, the
parties must determine what actions constitute a breach of the agreement. Second,
they must decide which available procedural forums (court, arbitration,
mediation, etc.) will govern any such dispute. Finally, they must decide what
each party’s contractual remedies will be upon certain types of breach by the
other.
All this legal “talk” is just a way of getting to your
goal as an intended parent -to hold your sweet baby and complete your family.
All this legal “talk” is just a way of getting closer to your role as a surrogate mother -to
help another individual or family realize their dream of having children.
Shared Conception and it’s legal team knows how to expertly tread
the legal waters. Call on us-we are happy to work with you!
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