Can Children Born Through Surrogacy Have Secure Parentage Worldwide?

Somewhere right now, a child born through international surrogacy doesn't know who their legal parents are—and no international law exists to protect them. Here's why that matters.

For over a decade, Stephen Page of Page Provan Family and Fertility Lawyers has been fighting for international reform. In 2011, he was invited to lead a global effort to create a Hague Convention on international surrogacy—and what he discovered shocked him: children born through surrogacy across borders face a legal nightmare of inconsistent recognition, "limping parentage," and stateless uncertainty.

The problem? Europe sees the surrogate as the legal mother. America recognises the intended parents. And the rest of the world is caught in between—with no global standard to protect the child's identity and security.

🔑 In this podcast, you'll uncover:

Why a child's parentage can literally disappear depending on which country they're born in

·       How the California Supreme Court solved this 30 years ago—but the rest of the world hasn't caught up

·       The dangerous gap between European and American approaches to parentage rights

·       Why Stephen's proposed international convention stalled (and the cultural clash preventing progress)

·       How the UN's approach to "eradicate" surrogacy would trample on reproductive rights and LGBTQIA+ freedoms

·       Why prioritising the child's secure parentage must come before all other reforms

The shocking reality: Children are already born. The law can't erase that. It can only recognise it—or fail them.

This is about more than legal paperwork. It's about a child's fundamental right to identity, security, and a stable family.

📌 For more on surrogacy law and human rights: 🔗 https://www.pageprovan.com.au

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 💬 What reform would you prioritise? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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