A woman in the USA who acted as a surrogate for a
single man, and gave birth to triplets, has taken her claim for custody of at
least one of the children to an appeals court.
Melissa Cook agreed to act as a surrogate for the man,
known as CM, in 2015 using his sperm and donor eggs. The pair drew up a
contract under which it was agreed she would be paid US$33,000 for the
pregnancy plus $6000 for each additional child.
However, when CM discovered that Cook was pregnant
with triplets, his lawyer allegedly asked her to abort one of the fetuses,
claiming that CM was not in a financial position to support three children – a
fact that was later disputed by CM.
Cook also claims that CM threatened to withhold
payments due to her under the agreement, including money for hospital care, if
she did not comply – the contract allegedly contained a clause allowing CM the
option of abortion. He also reportedly told Cook that he would rather give up the
third child for adoption than to allow her to have custody.
Cook sought to challenge the validity of the contract
by asking a court to rule that Californian surrogacy law, under which
commercial surrogacy arrangements are permitted, was unconstitutional.
Cook, who has four previous children, also sought
custody of the child that CM allegedly said he could not afford to raise, but
has said she would have all three if it was shown he could not care for them
adequately.
A Californian state court ruled against her, but Cook
is now appealing that decision and the case was heard at a federal district
court last week, and the decision is currently pending.
Her lawyer, Michael Caspino, said it was a 'landmark
case'. 'Surrogacy needs to be fixed because right now the women who carry the
babies and the children have zero rights. No right whatsoever. And there needs
to be balance here,' he told the Daily Mail.
'The only people with rights under the California
statute are the people who write the cheques to get the babies. Nobody else
matters. That is wrong. That needs to be fixed.'
Cook is also being represented by one of the lawyers
involved in the 'Baby M' case in the 1980s, in which a surrogate sought custody
of a child, who was later allowed to remain with the intended parents with the
surrogate being granted visitation rights. The contract in this case was
declared invalid.
CM's lawyer, Robert Walmsley, said that while CM could
have requested that Cook terminate a fetus, he could not have forced her to do
so. 'Most importantly, the children are still his,' he added.
Walmsley also disputed many of the claims made by
Cook. 'There are so many erroneous facts in the court complaints filed by
Melissa Cook and her lawyers,' he said. 'Their goal is to litigate this in the
media and file in any court available to drain him financially.'
This is what I've found on surrogacy board. Thought this might be useful to add here~''The transmission of U.S. citizenship at birth is governed by the INA (Immigration and Nationality Act), Sections 301 and/or 309. According to the INA, for the Department of State to consider a U.S. citizen parent of the child born by surrogacy, s/he is required to have a biological connection in order to to the child to transmit U.S. citizenship to the child at birth.
ReplyDeleteTo sum up, in order to transmit U.S. citizenship to a baby conceived through assisted conception, a U.S. citizen father or mother must be the genetic parent. In the case of the U.S. citizen mother, she must be either the genetic or the gestational and legal mother of the child at the time and place of birth. Please, keep in mind that by “gestational mother” we mean the woman who bears the pregnancy and gives birth to the child.
In any case, the determination of citizenship of children born abroad is the responsibility of the U.S. Department of State, and is governed by the U.S. legal framework. Taking this into account, you should be aware of the fact that even if local law recognized a surrogacy agreement and found that U.S. parents are the legal parents of a child conceived through assisted reproductive technology, if the U.S. citizen parents are not the biological parents of the child, the child wouldn’t be considered as a U.S. citizen at birth.
The Department is clear on this matter and states they cannot “pre-adjudicate” a citizenship determination; for this reason, in many cases involving surrogacy or any other assisted reproduction technique, the parents are required to undergo DNA testing as a way of proving their biological connection to the child born to a foreign surrogate.
The Department is also clear on the fact that children born abroad to foreign surrogates, and are not related to a U.S. citizen parent, can have trouble entering the United States of America, as he/she will not acquire U.S. citizenship automatically at birth.'' Sounds really complicated, doesn't it..
Check out: mother-surrogate.info. The site is really awesome for those who're looking onto surrogacy in Ukraine!~''All services provided by Biotexcom clinic, both surrogacy and egg donation programs, have perfect balance of price and quality. The outstanding peculiarity of all our packages is “all-inclusive” basis. Depending on the package you choose, you can be provided with all or some of the following services:
ReplyDeleteUnlimited number of attempts. The main principle is guaranteed result. It means that in case of failure they’ll be trying again and again until they get the desired result and you travel back home with long-awaited baby. It’s already covered by your contract and doesn’t require any extra fees. All relevant medical examinations. Whatever medical examinations you need within your program, they all are covered by your contract. Even if you have already been examined in other clinics and the reason of unsuccessful treatment wasn’t determined, they will do extra checkups in order to make treatment effective and get the desired result. Medications and all medical expenses. All their packages include all medications for hormonal stimulation in framework of your program, vitamins, medical expenses and services of medical staff. Legal service: assisting in getting all documents in civil status registry office and embassy, translations, lawyer service, assisting of a manager at all stages of your program, etc. Their legal service department and Spanish speaking manager will assist you in getting all needed documents, medical and civil birth certificate, notary, egalization, genetic testing and baby’s passport as quick as possible.
Accommodation. All clients stay in comfortable apartments and are provided with housemaid, cook and babysitter. Their attendant staff speaks English. The only thing that depends upon the type of package you choose is how large your apartment will be and if you will share it with other couples or stay separately. Meals. There will be a cook who cooks dishes according to your tastes: home cuisine, fresh farm products and balanced menu with no. limitations – every day throughout your program. Transportation. Biotexcom has its own car fleet with drivers who know the peculiarities of clinic’s work and your transportation...''
Here we go further~''Large base of egg donors and surrogate mothers
ReplyDeleteEach day they examine up to 200 candidates who want to donate their eggs, and only 20% of them comply with their strict requirements to prospective egg donors’ physical and psychological health, age, having at least one healthy child restriction, and of course – pleasant appearance. Their donor base has an outstanding advantage – you have an opportunity to choose donor on your own. Thus, you are provided with her photos, video interview and 3D photo on which you can see your donor from different angles. Their donor base is one of the largest in the world. It enables them to start program just after signing up contract with no wasting time on searching for a donor. DNA test. In order to get a baby’s passport, you need to prove genetic relation to the baby. There is a special procedure of DNA testing in the embassy in order to prove it. PGD. It is a genetic testing performed to the embryo prior to the implantation. You can make sure that embryos are healthy or determine the gender of embryos. Pediatrician supervision. When your baby is born, there will be a qualified and skilled pediatrician to take care of your baby’s health. He will teach you the basis of newborn’s care and will call on you regularly during all your stay in Ukraine. Baby basket. You will get a baby basket with all stuff needed for your baby during his or her first days: clothes, bottles, pacifiers and baby formula. Babysitter and housemaid. There will be a housemaid who is familiar with newborn care. Thus, she will be there to help you with the baby at any time of day and night, and if needed – she will help you contact the necessary specialist in the clinic..''
We passed surrogacy program in Biotexcom. The price of our VIP surrogacy package was 49.900 euros. The price covers the cost of accommodation, assistance, transportation, including all needed medicines. The payment of the program was divided into 5 rates. 10. 000 euros - the first instalment, which we paid during the first visit to the clinic after signing the contract. 9900 euros - at the day of the second visit and before the fertilization. 10 000 euros - paid on the 27th week of the gestation of the surrogate mother: 6000 euro is paid by transfer to the direct account of a surrogate mother and 4000 euro is paid to the Agency. 10 000 euros - paid after the birth of the child before the documents processing. 10 000 euros is the last installment to be paid after receiving of the child’s birth certificate and before getting assistance in receiving of a passport for a child to leave the country.
ReplyDeleteIn case of miscarriage, abortion etc of the child the clinic guarantees the resumption of attempts with no additional charge for the intended parents.
In Ukraine it would have never happened at all! NEVER! In Ukraine surrogacy is a properly regulated service. Frequently there is concern that the surrogate mother will bond with the child and be unable to give it up when the baby is born. But this is impossible due to Ukrainian legislation. Once a baby is conceived it realtes to intended parents only! This was the hugest factor for us whilst seeking the clinic/country where to pass surrogacy treatment. With Ukrainian Biotexcom we were sure to avoid any sort of the hassle!
ReplyDeleteOMG! It's so unfair! Just imagine that you and your spouse want to have a baby, however, you are unable to conceive due to a number of reasons. Your friend knows how much you would love a baby and offers to help you and your spouse out: She will carry your child for you. It’s an exciting time for you! The opportunity to have the family you always want…until you look up the laws of your country or state and realize that surrogacy is banned. Flash to a few weeks later when you and your partner decide to do surrogacy in another country where it is legal. You get excited again! Until, you discover that you would be unable to return home with your child because your country will not legally recognize you as the parent or your child as a citizen of their country..And this one episode! Have no words to describe. Am just shocked!
ReplyDeleteSadly but this happens within countries.. I know for sure this would never happen with Ukrainian clinics. As surrogacy is well regulated there. Under Ukrainian law, the child is considered to belong Intended Parents from the moment of conception. Once the baby is born, the birth certificate is issued with the names of the Intended Parents. Surrogate is not awarded any parental rights. As a result, the surrogate has no standing to keep the baby or claim any rights. This is true even if egg and sperm donors were used and there were no biological relation between the child and intended parents - Their names remain on the birth certificate. In general, there is a much more comprehensive legal framework for surrogacy in Ukraine. Other European countries either prohibit surrogacy altogether. Or they allow surrogacy agreements only the surrogate is unpaid. For those countries that allow surrogacy, the laws typically give all parental rights to the surrogate until a court process (‘Parental Order’ for example) can transfer the rights from her to the Intended Parents. In these countries the surrogate has the right to keep the baby if she chooses - But this is not the case with surrogacy in Ukraine.
ReplyDeleteSuper great thing you've done! I'm amazed how clearly you've put all the points. It must be helpful for those trying to get more insight into surrogacy process overseas. One thing to add. This is up to the clinic in Ukraine to make your exit process faster or slower. I know for sure BIOTEXCOM supplies its patients with all the necessary documents for the embassy. Which makes process fast and easy.
ReplyDelete