Surrogacy, Sperm Donors, & Same Sex Parental Rights

More than ever before, Americans are turning to assisted reproduction to start their families. In this interview, leading family law expert Professor Douglas NeJaime (Yale Law School) explains how U.S. laws are attempting to catch up to this shift. Traditionally parental rights are based on the marital presumption – the parents are, by default, the woman who birthed the child and her husband. This can then result in the denial of parental rights to non-biological mothers or fathers who start a family using assisted reproduction. In these circumstances, states may assign parental rights to the egg donor, sperm donor, or surrogate, despite the intentions and sometimes written agreements of the parties. Finally, Prof. NeJaime discusses how new laws in a number of states better fit modern reproduction practices and rethinks what it means to be a legal parent. Douglas NeJaime is a professor of law at Yale Law School and a national leader on parentage law and parentage law reform relating to assisted reproduction. ► For more legal explainers and interviews with the titans of law: http://www.talksonlaw.com ► For more information on the interview with Prof. NeJaime on assisted reproduction and parental rights: https://www.talksonlaw.com/talks/assisted-reproduction-and-parental-rights