Intended Parents

I know you are not going to like this answer, but it depends on the lawyer. We all have different fee structures. I will note that the industry typically works on a flat fee system so you pay a set fee to your attorney for whatever you are retaining them to do, whether it is an egg or sperm donation agreement or a gestational surrogacy agreement. Some attorneys offer bundled packages (my office does) which provide certain guarantees which can include drafting contracts for rematches, or a set fee for legal services no matter what it takes for you to have that baby. Others charge per contract or offer all of these options (as I do). This is certainly a question you must ask each attorney you interview. If you are experiencing financial hardship, you should bring that up as many attorneys will work with you on their fee structures. My office’s fee structure is available upon request, just shoot me an email to Liz@StorkLawyer.com and I am happy to send it to you. I also offer a free, time unlimited initial consult to make sure we are a good fit to work together.

I think the biggest and most important question you can ask a reproductive lawyer (or ART Lawyer), is to find out how long they have been practicing in the field and how many contracts they estimate they have done over the course of their practice. I have been practicing for over 21 years in this industry and in that time we have gone from having a handful of reproductive lawyers when I started to now having hundreds if not thousands of us! Knowing where any individual attorney falls on that spectrum of experience can help you make an informed decision when choosing an attorney to draft your contract. In addition to asking about their background and experience, you can ask them about their affiliation with industry organizations. I am an ART Fellow of the Academy of Adoption and Assisted Reproduction Attorneys. This organization is commonly referred to as the Quad A or “AAAA” and currently is the only organization which vets their members to ensure that we have experience and are well-respected within the community. I also am a member of New York Attorneys for Family Formation Law which is made up of attorneys practicing in New York who are also members of the Quad A. There also is an ART Law Committee that works with the American Bar Association’s Family Law Section (I am proud to have been a member since its inception), and SEEDS (The Society for Ethics in Egg Donation and Surrogacy). Being a member of any of these organizations, or all of them, provides you assurances that your attorney is attending continuing legal education seminars on ART Law, and that they are committed to adhering to best practices in the industry.

I think it also is important to have a good working relationship with your attorney. Each of us have a different practice style and given how difficult this process already is, it is important to find the right attorney for your situation and personality. For example, I am very hands-on and provide a high level of “touch” . . . when you work with my office you work with me and no one else. I maintain a fairly small client base at any given time so I can give my clients 100% and really be there for you. I went through this and I have made a commitment to myself to provide really personalized legal services. Not all of us do; and not all intended parents need or want that. Some attorneys have large teams of paralegals and associates who will work with you and that can speed up your process and might be exactly what you need. I would rather work hand-in-hand with you to support you through this journey, make sure you are educated and informed and that your agreement meets your particular needs. I have had associates and paralegals . . . and they were all amazing! But at this juncture in my career, I really want to be present for my clients. Maybe that is what you are looking for, but if not, I can refer you to a colleague that might be a better fit for you.

It depends on the type of contract I am drafting and your timeframe. I have turned egg donation contracts around in forty-eight (48) hours for a rush matter and a week for a rush surrogacy. But I don’t think one week is a reasonable expectation if you want a properly drafted, reviewed, negotiated surrogacy agreement.

If you are doing an egg donation (with or without an agency) I would say you can expect the process to take no more than a couple of weeks.

If you are embarking on a New York surrogacy journey with an agency, and the agency is organized, I can usually get everything done in three weeks depending on the surrogate’s and her attorney’s schedules, and assuming there are no surprises. If you encounter any surprises (like the health insurance policy wasn’t reviewed) or something changes mid-way through contract (your surrogate changes jobs) drafting and negotiating can take much longer. I have had contracts that have taken months to complete due to unforeseen events. That isn’t the norm, but I want to be completely transparent about the stuff that can happen so you don’t wind up surprised and angry.

If you are working on an independent journey, I think you should expect the contract drafting phase to take about 4-6 weeks. New York does have a lot of requirements for your Gestational Surrogacy Agreement and while I will absolutely make sure we get each requirement checked off, it takes time to get everything done and we are dependent on other companies (like insurance brokers) to help us meet the state requirements, and we cannot control how quickly outside entities may work. If you are working on an independent journey, take a look at my New York Surrogacy page so you can get an idea of some of the things we will be working on and see if you can get a head-start on anything.

New York’s Child Parent Security Act (CPSA) does a couple of amazing things for intended parents and gestational surrogates. First, the process for obtaining a pre-birth Order and Judgment of Parentage is pretty seamless. The statute is still relatively new and there are some counties in New York trying to figure things out, but for the most part I am finding that once I file the Petition for a Judgment of Parentage, I have the Order and Judgment in a few weeks (I had one case recently where I got the Order exactly one week after I filed the Petition!). The Order and Judgment is amended after birth for surrogacy matters so that the final Order and Judgment of Parentage includes the baby’s name and date of birth. Some Courts require a virtual appearance by the Parties, but that too seems to be diminishing as Judges and Support Magistrates become more familiar with the CPSA. We would certainly talk about the courts where we could file your petition to make sure we have the easiest and least stressful process possible and to discuss what you might expect from specific courts. Filing Petitions in matters pertaining to gamete donation (usually sperm donation) are equally seamless. Typically, we file the Petition and get an Order shortly after filing without needing a Court appearance.

New York has a reputation for being slow to issue birth certificates. I have put in place a process which I am finding helps speed up the issuance of birth certificates. However, I can never guarantee how long New York City or New York State might take to get a birth certificate with everything spelled correctly and all the dates correctly entered, in your hands.

New York also set out to simplify the process of establishing parental rights for LGBTQ+ families. Part of the intent behind the CPSA was to streamline the process by which LGBTQ+ families have their parental rights established. That said, some people still wonder if the Order and Judgment of Parentage is sufficient to protect their parental rights throughout the United States or the world. If you are in an LGBTQ+ relationship and have concerns about whether a NY Order and Judgment of Parentage will be universally recognized, I recommend that – as part of working together – we discuss this issue in depth. Every parent and every family is unique and there is no set response for everyone. That said, my personal opinion is that a New York Order and Judgment of Parentage is entitled to full faith and credit under the United States Constitution to the same extent as an Order of Adoption. But whether and to what extent it might be prudent for you also to undertake a second or step-parent adoption is a personal decision that you should discuss with your attorney.

In the post-COVID era, most reproductive lawyers work remotely with their clients. We utilize Zoom, phone and email to communicate with you. I do have offices in Manhattan if you want an in-person meeting, as well as offices in Westchester and Connecticut, but 99.9% of the time my clients prefer to work with me using electronic platforms like Zoom or WhatsApp.