Lack of Surrogacy Laws ‘Reckless’, Australia Government Should Investigate Says Judge

Top judges in Australia are calling on the government to investigate its laws on international commercial surrogacy over concerns of lack of enforcement and human rights violations, reports the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Because many parents who had used commercial surrogacy services abroad could not prove who a surrogacy-born child’s mother was in her court, Family Court Chief Justice Diana Byrant said her primary concern was that Australia’s current laws—or lack thereof—were violating the convention on the rights of a child.

Federal Circuit Court Chief Justice John Pascoe voiced similar concerns, saying, “It is almost impossible to establish whether the surrogate mother actually consented to relinquish the child, and of course the family courts can only make orders in relation to the parenting of the child… So children really can be left in limbo.”

“In Thailand eggs are acquired from the Ukraine. There is no chance those children will know who their biological parents are,” said Judge Byrant, as quoted by ABC. “I think as Australians we are being quite reckless … we are creating a number of children in 20 years time, who will want to known their birth mothers and there is no chance they will know anything about them.”

Thailand Lawyer’s Comment:

Thailand law states that the surrogate “birth mother” is the legal mother of the child. The procedure to abrogate a surrogate mother’s rights usually involves a motion for paternity and a motion for sole custody; these are normal motions filed in Thai courts on a regular basis. For a complete severance of the surrogate’s rights, an adoption by the intended parents would be required.

The problem of “children in limbo” is caused, not by an absence of laws, at least in Thailand, but by the Australian Embassy not requiring Australian parents using commercial surrogacy services to follow Thai law.

Read the full story here.

Read more surrogacy news from Thailand and Australia:
Baby Gammy’s Surrogacy May Have Violated Thailand’s Medical Regulations
Thailand Closes Surrogacy Clinics: New Law May Ban
Baby Gammy: Australia Investigates Father, Convicted Child Sex Offender

Related Legal Documents on Surrogacy in Thailand:
Thailand Draft Surrogacy Act
Thailand Medical Council Regulations on Assisted Reproduction Technologies