So not mothers: responsibility for surrogate orphans

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Law
• Bioethics
• Family Law

Background:

• Legal frameworks typically recognize birth mothers, but some jurisdictions acknowledge commissioning couples as legal parents in commercial surrogacy.
• Commercial surrogates are often viewed as 'vessels,' not moral mothers, in contractual arrangements.
• Instances of commissioning parents abandoning children born via surrogacy present ethical and legal challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the moral and legal implications of child abandonment by commissioning parents in commercial surrogacy.
• To analyze the conceptualization of commercial gestational surrogates and their expected responsibilities.
• To challenge the assumption that surrogates should assume maternal duties for abandoned children.

Main Methods:

• Review of legal precedents and ethical theories related to surrogacy.
• Analysis of case studies involving child abandonment in commercial surrogacy.
• Philosophical examination of the moral status of gestational carriers.

Main Results:

• Commercial surrogates are frequently conceptualized as mere 'vessels' in surrogacy contracts.
• Child abandonment by commissioning parents creates unexpected maternal responsibilities for surrogates.
• There is a moral inconsistency in expecting surrogates to assume responsibility for abandoned children.

Conclusions:

• If gestational surrogates are to be viewed as vessels, they should not be held responsible for children abandoned by commissioning parents.
• This includes responsibilities such as adoption or state surrender.
• Ethical and legal frameworks must address the consequences of parental abandonment in commercial surrogacy.