The purpose of a surrogacy contract is to clearly state the various agreements between the intended parents and the surrogate, which can range from compensation to medical providers. However, the intention of all parties from the outset is obvious – the intended parents are to become the custodial and legal parents of the child to be carried by the surrogate. Because of this, it is important to note the rights that the intended parents have in a surrogacy agreement.
The means by which the embryos were created is important for the intended parents to include in the surrogacy agreement. If the embryos were created from the egg and sperm of the intended mother and the intended father, then the agreement will state this and will indicate that the intended parents are also the genetic parents. However, if an egg donor is used, the agreement should state this as well. It is important for both the intended parents and the surrogate to acknowledge in writing that they have been informed about the making of the embryos. Going further, with properly signed documentation, the egg donor will have no rights to the child born from embryos created using the egg donor’s eggs.
Whether or not the intended parents are genetically related to the embryos should not matter in terms of their right to become the parents of the child to be born. For example, under Connecticut law, as long as the intended parents and the gestational carrier are parties to a valid gestational carrier agreement, the case is one of gestational surrogacy, and a physician provides an affidavit detailing how the conception occurred, then, prior to the birth, the intended parents may be named as the legal parents of the child to be born, and their names will be placed on the child’s birth certificate.