Surrogacy agreements became legal in the District of Columbia for the first time in 25 years on April 7, following Congressional approval of a statute passed by the district city…
The Cambodian government finally took action last month to resolve a legal quandary that trapped dozens of foreign couples and their unborn or newborn children in the country following its…
The Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, or SART, announced May 2 that, with preliminary 2015 data in, more than 1 million babies have been born in the United States via…
A recent crackdown on surrogacy in the Mexican state of Tobasco has forced foreign intended parents to sue the government to receive birth certificates for their children born via surrogacy…
A U.S. District Court ruled Feb. 16 that South Carolina’s refusal to list both parents on the birth certificates of twins born to a married lesbian couple violates the 14th…
For the first time in history, an Italian court has recognized a same-sex couple as legal parents. The gay male couple, who has not been identified, had twin boys seven…
The wheels of progress turn slowly, and in some parts of the world, leaders stand on the brakes, bring it to a screeching halt, then do their best to roll…
Last year we applauded a decision by the European Court of Human Rights that the Italian government violated the rights of an Italian couple in removing from their home the…
In the realm of “good news/bad news,” twin boys born to a gay Italian couple via in vitro fertilization and surrogacy in California will be recognized as Italian citizens, an…
One of the most provocative issues in reproductive law is the legal status of frozen embryos—how they are disposed of, who has the right to determine how they will used,…
For this season of hope, here’s a story of hope. As reported by the BBC, a 24-year-old woman, who was rendered infertile after chemotherapy for a life-threatening childhood blood disease,…
The sensational legal battle between actress Sofia Vergara and her ex-fiancé, Florida businessman Nick Loeb, over the disposition of the couple’s two fertilized embryos recently got even more sensational. On December…
The notorious case of the Kansas sperm donor who ended up on the hook for child support at long last appears to have reached a conclusion. A Kansas District Court…
One of the things President-elect Trump and the Republican Party would like to do is repeal the Affordable Care Act, or “Obamacare,” on day 1 of the new administration. Big words……
In yet another example of the perils of too-casual sperm donor arrangements, a gay Canadian man who donated sperm to help a medical school friend conceive more than 16 years…
I had the great honor to present last week at Yale School of Law, along with Professor Douglas G. Nejaime (visiting professor from UCLA School of Law), on “The ‘ART’…
The past several weeks have been a whirlwind of speaking engagements for me, primarily for the purpose of educating lawyers and sharing the knowledge and skills I’ve gained in the…
A new study by the London School of Economics argues that the U.K.’s statutory 10-year limit on storage of cryopreserved eggs or embryos has created a double standard and has,…
We first wrote in 2012 about the work of Japanese scientists who had produced viable eggs from the skin cells of mice, as cited in this Sky News report. This…
A California bill signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown late last week will provide reassurance and peace of mind to California intended parents, particularly same-sex intended parents, as well…
I was highly honored recently, in my capacity as chair of the ART Committee of the American Bar Association's Family Law Section, to receive the ABA Family Law Section Chair's Cup award, presented…
With the growing use of cryopreservation, a method of freezing for future use eggs, sperm or embryos, we’re also seeing a growing amount of litigation resulting from disagreements as to their disposition. Sometimes a couple freezes eggs or sperm for medical reasons, such as cancer treatment, or merely in order to delay starting a family until a more opportune time. If the couple later separates, the partners may disagree about whether the eggs, sperm or embryo should be destroyed or preserved, how and when they can be used, and who has the right to make that decision.
Although such cases are still relatively uncommon (most people resolve these matters privately), as the technology improves and becomes more accessible to more people, it’s reasonable to assume such disagreements will occur more often. And as the law stands now, it’s anyone’s bet how these cases will wash out: in this area of law, it’s still the wild, Wild West.
Many couples sign a consent agreement or medical consent form, usually provided by their fertility agency, when they undergo egg or sperm harvesting or in vitro fertilization. Often, the clinic documents don’t cover what happens in the case of separation or divorce. Few intended parents go to a fertility thinking about what will happen if they get a divorce—most don’t want to think about it. However, it is incumbent upon the fertility services providers to make sure all eventualities are covered in these documents, and these intending parents must also be advised to carefully consider all eventualities before cryopreserving their genetic material.
But as things stand today, even the existence of a medical consent form addressing embryo disposition doesn’t rule out the prospect of conflict and litigation. Sometimes the court honors these consent forms, but not always.
The UK Court of Appeal this week took steps to clear the way for a mother to help carry out the last wishes of her dying daughter to be a…
After a valiant five-year battle, U.S. Senator Patty Murray succeeded last month in winning Senate approval of an $88 million appropriation over the next two years to pay for fertility treatments…
The UK High Court ruled today that UK’s surrogacy law, which bans single people from becoming legal parents via surrogacy, is in breach of the nation’s human rights laws, said…
A recent episode of NBC medical drama Chicago Med, (Season 1 Episode 15, “Inheritance”) set in the emergency room of Gaffney Chicago Medical Center, portrayed a scenario that was both…
Illuminations 2016, the annual awards gala of fertility advocacy organization Path2Parenthood (formerly American Fertility Association), held April 15 at the Four Seasons Los Angeles in Beverly Hills, was as inspiring…
The demand for assisted reproduction technology services is exploding. Of the nearly 2.7 million babies born in the United States in 2008, at least 38,496 (1.44 percent) were born via…
As more and more intended parents seek to create families via international surrogacy, national governments have been forced to consider their rules for parental recognition and citizenship of the resulting…
Parties in a long-standing class action lawsuit against two non-profit organizations serving assisted reproductive technology providers and egg donor agencies finally settled recently in an agreement that some say may…
A heart-warming news story out of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, last month highlights the remarkable advances in assisted reproductive technology (ART) over the past two decades and the positive impact it…
Former supermodel Tyra Banks and Norwegian photographer Erik Asla announced this week the birth of their son via assisted reproductive technology (ART) and surrogacy.Banks had made no secret of the…
Reciprocal IVF (in vitro fertilization) often is chosen by lesbian couples who want to have a child together. In a typical reciprocal IVF scenario, one partner provides the eggs, the…
A law professor at Stetson University in Tampa, Florida, is suing the IRS to treat his and his partner’s assisted reproductive technology costs in the same way it has treated…
It’s common knowledge that the world’s rainforests contain untold millions of plants and animals that may hold miraculous cures for innumerable human ailments. A study by a group of UC Santa…
A San Francisco court upheld earlier this week an agreement that frozen embryos created via in vitro fertilization during a couple’s marriage would be discarded in the event of their…
The case of William Marotta, perhaps better known as the “Kansas sperm donor” whom the state is pursuing for child support as the biological father, via sperm donation, of a…
As a dad with my spouse, Tommy Woelfel, of two twin boys born via egg donation and surrogacy, I’m often asked what it’s like raising twins. Some people speculate that…
I am honored to participate in Family-Building Options for LGBT People, a free seminar presented by my colleague, fertility doctor Dr. Guy Ringler. If you are lesbian, gay, bisexual or…
The Texas Department of State Health Services made headlines last month when it revealed in a court filing that it would begin allowing same-sex parents’ names on children’s birth certificates—although…
Since the June U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage in all 50 states, some LGBT intended parents who want to create families via surrogacy, egg donation or other forms…
May has been an especially busy month at International Fertility Law Group, with lots of travel and my participation in a series of excellent professional conferences and symposiums—all offering opportunities…
It’s hard to imagine what Italian fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana were thinking when they not only spoke out against gay adoption but spoke of the children born…
In its most recent ruling on families formed via assisted reproductive technology, the European Court of Human Rights has condemned Italian authorities for removing a child born to an Italian…
Due in part to legal restrictions on surrogacy in many jurisdictions and the high cost of surrogacy and other types of assisted reproductive technology, a brisk surrogacy tourism industry has…
The question of whether egg donor fees constitute taxable income has long been a muddy area: states have varied on their interpretations; some agencies issue 1099s to donors, some don’t;…
Just out in the Jan. 23 issue of The Hollywood Reporter is a well-researched and informative article on assisted reproductive technology. Researchers from the publication interviewed me for the piece…
I traveled to New York this week to attend the American Fertility Association’s annual fundraising gala, Illuminations NYC, held Monday, Nov. 3, at The Yale Club of New York. This…
I am fortunate to participate in two great professional conferences, both of which bring together some of the best minds in assisted reproductive technology to share best practices and advance…
A number of high-profile cases of malfeasance or unethical activity related to international surrogacy have recently made headlines worldwide, fueling negative misconceptions.
