Yifat Shaltiel, Director of Surrogate Steps and Reproductive Law Attorney, discusses Jewish Surrogacy with the Jewish Theological Seminary (www.jtsa.edu/ethicallife)
As more people turn to IVF to grow their families, the storage of unused frozen embryos for future use is becoming common. How can you avoid disputes over your IVF embryos should you separate from your partner?
Surrogacy is a beautiful but often intimidating process. No matter where you are in exploring the possibility of growing your family or becoming a surrogate, we are here to help!
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Absolutely! Surrogate Steps consultants are proud to work with same-sex couple and others in the LGBTQ+ community.
We aim to match you with a compassionate and caring surrogate who will understand your personalized individual needs and develop a trusting relationship with you.
Surrogate Steps consultants are aware of the particular attention to legal detail that is required when matching same-sex couples with a Surrogate. Surrogate Steps consultants work together with legal teams nationally and internationally to ensure that our Surrogate Mothers reside in States that are friendly to same-sex couples. This includes working with States that will allow both names of same-sex Intended Parents to be placed on their child’s birth certificate.
Surrogates are screened based on a number of social, behavioral, socioeconomic, health, medical, and pregnancy-related factors in a multi-stage interview-like process. In addition, to form-based and phone/video-based interviews, surrogates have their medical records combed through by a trained nurse/medical professional, must obtain clearance from the OB for pregnancy/surrogacy, pass a medical exam by your fertility clinic, and undergo a background check as well as an in-person home study by a private investigator, a social worker, or a Surrogate Steps professional. Over 100 small details that could interfere with the physical aspect of pregnancy or the relationship between the surrogate and the intended parent or agency will automatically disqualify someone from becoming a surrogate.
Surrogacy laws are complex and vary greatly by state and county. It’s important to work with an attorney to ensure that you get to keep your child and that your journey runs as smoothly as possible.
Surrogates must:
Be between the age of 23-41
Be in good health and receive medical clearance from their OB and your fertility clinic for pregnancy.
Demonstrate a high level of maturity, responsibility, and responsiveness
Have at least one previous successful pregnancy free of pregnancy or birth complications
Be a non-active smoker or and have no history of alcohol or substance abuse
Not be on section 8 housing
Have a strong support system
Reside in the United States (but not allowed to reside in Louisiana, Nebraska, or Michigan).
Many people assume others become gestational surrogates for money, but this is almost never the case. Sure, money may be the thing that initially sparks someone’s interest in becoming a surrogate and be a factor in why someone ultimately becomes a surrogate, but it is never the primary reason someone becomes a carrier. That’s because those who are in it for “quick and easy” money quickly realize that being a surrogate is by no means easy money and drop out from the surrogacy process.
In almost all cases, those who ultimately become gestational carriers do so because they are incredibly compassionate people and have an overwhelming drive to help those in need. For example, many surrogates share that being pregnant is very easy for them, and they love being pregnant, but that they do not want more children, and would love to use their gift of fertility to help others in need. Other surrogates share that they have personally known someone who struggled with fertility, and realized that surrogacy is the only way for some people to have children, and they want to help others have children, and to give the gift of life.
The process to ensure you get to keep your baby starts with our team coordinating and matching you with a surrogate in a state where the necessary legal work to finalize your parental rights can be accomplished.
You will also need to have wills in place prior to the embryo transfer that ensures a guardian is in place to care for your children in the event of your death.
Once you are matched, we will draft the gestational carrier agreement for you, which will then be negotiated between you and your independent attorney and the surrogate and their independent attorney.
Once the surrogate commences the second trimester of pregnancy, you will work with your attorney to commence and ensure your paternity rights. This will ensure that you are recognized as legal parents of your child and that you are able to make all medical and legal decisions on behalf of your child commencing at birth.
Yes, both you and the surrogate will be required to sign a gestational carrier agreement.
A gestational carrier agreement is a contract between the intended parents and a gestational carrier (and her partner/spouse). The contract details each party’s rights, obligations, intentions, and expectations in connection with their arrangement.
The contract addresses topics including the location of delivery, future contact between the parties, parental rights, custody issues, control over medical decisions during the pregnancy, intended parents’ presence during delivery, payment of medical bills, liability for medical complications, health and life insurance, and more. Financial considerations, including the carrier’s compensation and reimbursements, including lost wages, child care, legal fees, maternity clothes, and more, are also addressed in the gestational carrier agreement.
The gestational carrier agreement is drafted by Yifat Shaltiel, Esq. of Surrogate Steps, but the intended parents and the gestational carrier must be independently represented by an attorney specializing in surrogacy law throughout the negotiation process of this contract. This ensures that all parties have a complete understanding of their rights and responsibilities to the other parties.
Both attorneys are compensated by the intended parents.
Yes, even though we are an attorney-directed agency, it is important to obtain independent counsel for some aspects of your journey. This is important for ethical reasons and to ensure both our surrogates and intended parents are treated fairly, ethically, and legally.
Still, we will always have your back. Prior to providing you with a surrogate profile, we will conduct a legal evaluation to ensure that the surrogate resides in a state with favorable laws that accommodate your family’s needs.
When it is time to work on your gestational carrier agreement, the legal contract between you and your surrogate, our director will draft your gestational carrier agreement and assist you with obtaining an attorney to represent you and a separate independent attorney to represent the surrogate in the review of the gestational carrier agreement.
We have a strong working relationship with all attorneys we recommend and are confident in their understanding of surrogacy law. You are, of course, free to find an attorney yourself, but our expert team will require the attorney to be independent, be experienced in surrogacy law, and have no conflict of interest.
Yes, everything will be worked out with the hospital and other required entities prior to the birth of your child so that you will be able to take your baby home directly from the hospital.
Understandably, intended parents often wish to be in the labor and delivery room for the birth. This may be possible but depends on hospital policy as well as the surrogate’s comfort.
Following the birth of your child, the baby will join you in a room assigned to you or remain in the nursery. The parent is the first person to hold the child, other than medical professionals. Most hospital policies require that your child remains in the hospital until the surrogate has been discharged.
We work with all fertility clinics in the United States. Most of the time, intended parents choose to continue their surrogacy journey with a fertility clinic they have already worked with. That said, we have connections with many of the top fertility clinics and are happy to provide referrals for a recommended clinic.
All surrogates will deliver at a hospital near their home. Most of our surrogates have existing relationships with an OBGYN and will deliver at the same hospital where they gave birth to their own children or previous surrogacies.
Intended parents, understandably so, often wish to be in the labor and delivery room for the birth. This may be possible but depends on hospital policy as well as the surrogate’s comfort.
Following the birth of your child, the baby will join you in a room assigned to you or remain in the nursery. Most hospital policies require that your child remains in the hospital until the surrogate has been discharged.
Absolutely! Surrogate Steps consultants are proud to work with same-sex couple and others in the LGBTQ+ community.
We aim to match you with a compassionate and caring surrogate who will understand your personalized individual needs and develop a trusting relationship with you.
Surrogate Steps consultants are aware of the particular attention to legal detail that is required when matching same-sex couples with a Surrogate. Surrogate Steps consultants work together with legal teams nationally and internationally to ensure that our Surrogate Mothers reside in States that are friendly to same-sex couples. This includes working with States that will allow both names of same-sex Intended Parents to be placed on their child’s birth certificate.
Surrogates are screened based on a number of social, behavioral, socioeconomic, health, medical, and pregnancy-related factors in a multi-stage interview-like process. In addition, to form-based and phone/video-based interviews, surrogates have their medical records combed through by a trained nurse/medical professional, must obtain clearance from the OB for pregnancy/surrogacy, pass a medical exam by your fertility clinic, and undergo a background check as well as an in-person home study by a private investigator, a social worker, or a Surrogate Steps professional. Over 100 small details that could interfere with the physical aspect of pregnancy or the relationship between the surrogate and the intended parent or agency will automatically disqualify someone from becoming a surrogate.
Surrogacy laws are complex and vary greatly by state and county. It’s important to work with an attorney to ensure that you get to keep your child and that your journey runs as smoothly as possible.
Surrogates must:
Be between the age of 23-41
Be in good health and receive medical clearance from their OB and your fertility clinic for pregnancy.
Demonstrate a high level of maturity, responsibility, and responsiveness
Have at least one previous successful pregnancy free of pregnancy or birth complications
Be a non-active smoker or and have no history of alcohol or substance abuse
Not be on section 8 housing
Have a strong support system
Reside in the United States (but not allowed to reside in Louisiana, Nebraska, or Michigan).
Many people assume others become gestational surrogates for money, but this is almost never the case. Sure, money may be the thing that initially sparks someone’s interest in becoming a surrogate and be a factor in why someone ultimately becomes a surrogate, but it is never the primary reason someone becomes a carrier. That’s because those who are in it for “quick and easy” money quickly realize that being a surrogate is by no means easy money and drop out from the surrogacy process.
In almost all cases, those who ultimately become gestational carriers do so because they are incredibly compassionate people and have an overwhelming drive to help those in need. For example, many surrogates share that being pregnant is very easy for them, and they love being pregnant, but that they do not want more children, and would love to use their gift of fertility to help others in need. Other surrogates share that they have personally known someone who struggled with fertility, and realized that surrogacy is the only way for some people to have children, and they want to help others have children, and to give the gift of life.
The process to ensure you get to keep your baby starts with our team coordinating and matching you with a surrogate in a state where the necessary legal work to finalize your parental rights can be accomplished.
You will also need to have wills in place prior to the embryo transfer that ensures a guardian is in place to care for your children in the event of your death.
Once you are matched, we will draft the gestational carrier agreement for you, which will then be negotiated between you and your independent attorney and the surrogate and their independent attorney.
Once the surrogate commences the second trimester of pregnancy, you will work with your attorney to commence and ensure your paternity rights. This will ensure that you are recognized as legal parents of your child and that you are able to make all medical and legal decisions on behalf of your child commencing at birth.
Yes, both you and the surrogate will be required to sign a gestational carrier agreement.
A gestational carrier agreement is a contract between the intended parents and a gestational carrier (and her partner/spouse). The contract details each party’s rights, obligations, intentions, and expectations in connection with their arrangement.
The contract addresses topics including the location of delivery, future contact between the parties, parental rights, custody issues, control over medical decisions during the pregnancy, intended parents’ presence during delivery, payment of medical bills, liability for medical complications, health and life insurance, and more. Financial considerations, including the carrier’s compensation and reimbursements, including lost wages, child care, legal fees, maternity clothes, and more, are also addressed in the gestational carrier agreement.
The gestational carrier agreement is drafted by Yifat Shaltiel, Esq. of Surrogate Steps, but the intended parents and the gestational carrier must be independently represented by an attorney specializing in surrogacy law throughout the negotiation process of this contract. This ensures that all parties have a complete understanding of their rights and responsibilities to the other parties.
Both attorneys are compensated by the intended parents.
Yes, even though we are an attorney-directed agency, it is important to obtain independent counsel for some aspects of your journey. This is important for ethical reasons and to ensure both our surrogates and intended parents are treated fairly, ethically, and legally.
Still, we will always have your back. Prior to providing you with a surrogate profile, we will conduct a legal evaluation to ensure that the surrogate resides in a state with favorable laws that accommodate your family’s needs.
When it is time to work on your gestational carrier agreement, the legal contract between you and your surrogate, our director will draft your gestational carrier agreement and assist you with obtaining an attorney to represent you and a separate independent attorney to represent the surrogate in the review of the gestational carrier agreement.
We have a strong working relationship with all attorneys we recommend and are confident in their understanding of surrogacy law. You are, of course, free to find an attorney yourself, but our expert team will require the attorney to be independent, be experienced in surrogacy law, and have no conflict of interest.
Yes, everything will be worked out with the hospital and other required entities prior to the birth of your child so that you will be able to take your baby home directly from the hospital.
Understandably, intended parents often wish to be in the labor and delivery room for the birth. This may be possible but depends on hospital policy as well as the surrogate’s comfort.
Following the birth of your child, the baby will join you in a room assigned to you or remain in the nursery. The parent is the first person to hold the child, other than medical professionals. Most hospital policies require that your child remains in the hospital until the surrogate has been discharged.
We work with all fertility clinics in the United States. Most of the time, intended parents choose to continue their surrogacy journey with a fertility clinic they have already worked with. That said, we have connections with many of the top fertility clinics and are happy to provide referrals for a recommended clinic.
All surrogates will deliver at a hospital near their home. Most of our surrogates have existing relationships with an OBGYN and will deliver at the same hospital where they gave birth to their own children or previous surrogacies.
Intended parents, understandably so, often wish to be in the labor and delivery room for the birth. This may be possible but depends on hospital policy as well as the surrogate’s comfort.
Following the birth of your child, the baby will join you in a room assigned to you or remain in the nursery. Most hospital policies require that your child remains in the hospital until the surrogate has been discharged.
