Five Important Questions to Ask Your Surrogacy Lawyer

Surrogacy is a very challenging journey for couples that want to expand their families. To assure everything goes smoothly, a wise decision would be to work with a surrogacy lawyer.

This kind of person will assure the legality of the process, manage paperwork effectively, and answer all of your questions regarding the legal side of the surrogacy program.

And some questions really worth to be asked – let’s review the 5 most important of them.

“What is the cost of surrogacy law services?”

The financial side is essentially important. You have to plan your budget accordingly to make sure none of the payments have slipped from your attention. Usually, IVF clinics provide you with different financial plans depending on your needs.

It’s always a good idea, though, to let your surrogacy lawyer do research on options and figure out together the ultimate financial plan that will cover all surrogacy costs including medical checks, legal fees, embryo transplantation procedure, medications, and more. This will save you from any further questions and unexpected extra costs you didn’t consider while choosing the clinic.

Also, the lawyer can tell you more about payment options ‒ whether it can be done in a single transaction or step-by-step, according to the program’s needs at a time.

“What are the surrogacy laws in my State?”

Surrogacy laws are the key moment here. Sure, you can study all the regulations on your own, but having someone with expertise on your side is more beneficial.

You can ask your surrogacy lawyer to tell you more about the surrogacy laws in the country you live in and in the country you’re planning a surrogacy program. There are many nuances that have to be studied: birth registration, citizenships and visas, medical data confidentiality, and more. This is something that has to be studied right at the start to avoid any problematic experiences during the surrogacy journey.

“What is a surrogate contract?”

A surrogate contract is probably one of the most important documents during the program. It has to be compelling in order to mark your parental rights and other important legal moments.

A good surrogacy lawyer will not only tell you everything about the intricacies of this contract but will also help you write one and review it to make sure you and your child are legally protected. The contract has to be issued in two copies ‒ one for you and one for the clinic.

“Can the surrogate mother choose to keep the baby?”

Now, this is also a very important question as many intended parents fear that a surrogate will develop an emotional bond with the child she’s carrying and choose to keep it.

The law, however, is on your side here as gestational surrogacy requires the surrogate to have no genetic link to a child she is carrying. Anyway, establishing parental rights is a very important aspect of a surrogacy program, and having an experienced lawyer by your side is highly beneficial in this case.

“What happens after the contract is signed?”

The surrogacy program starts right when you choose an IVF clinic and a surrogacy lawyer. The child-carrying contract, however, is probably the most important document for the program as it establishes your parental rights and requirements ‒ both for you and a surrogate.

After the contract is signed, the medical evaluation can begin ‒ there’s more to that, though, and a good surrogacy lawyer/consulting agency will help you to prepare all the necessary documentation and figure out the following stages of the surrogacy process.

All in all, having a lawyer by your side that specializes in surrogacy law saves you time and relieves you from a lot of stress that can be caused by this long, but very beneficial journey. This person will guide you through the surrogacy program and make sure your newly expanded family is protected by the law ‒ both in the country the baby is born in and in the country of your citizenship.