Alabama Surrogacy Law
Alabama law does not directly address surrogacy, but at least one court has acknowledged the parental rights of non-biological participants in a surrogacy arrangement.
There is no statutory provision in Alabama law specifically addressing the validity of surrogacy arrangements. However, statutes dealing with placing children for adoption and "baby-buying" specifically indicate that they do not apply to surrogate motherhood. The case law has not specifically dealt with the validity of surrogacy agreements. It would seem, however, that courts will consider a participant in a surrogacy agreement with no biological relationship to the child as a parent in contemplating the best interests of the child. One 1996 case arose in the context of a divorce proceeding between a husband and wife who had been part of a traditional surrogacy (in which the surrogate mother is the biological contributor of the egg). The trial court awarded custody to the wife even though she was biologically unrelated to the child. The husband challenged the decision on the ground that he was the child's only biological parent. The court, however, rejected his request and permitted the child to remain with the wife on the basis of the child’s best interest. Although the validity of the surrogacy contract was not addressed, the court did consider the non-biological mother a legal parent.
Citations: ALA. CODE § 26-10A-33 (2002); ALA. CODE § 26-10A-34 (2002); Brasfield v. Brasfield, 679 So. 2d 1091 (Ala. Civ. App. 1996).
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Last Updated: 6/10/2004