State Laws and Legislation

Alaska Surrogacy Law

Summary: The Alaska statutes are silent with regard to surrogacy agreements, and the only reported state court case that touched on the issue was decided on unrelated grounds. The issue of surrogacy agreements involving lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) individuals has not yet been considered by the courts.

Explanation: In the case of In re T.N.F., the Alaska Supreme Court treated surrogacy as a type of adoption. This 1989 child custody case concerned a Chickasaw woman who orally agreed to be inseminated by sperm from her sister’s husband to bear a child for them. The surrogate mother signed legal adoption papers upon relinquishing custody, but then sought to have the adoption invalidated on the basis that it had not been carried out in accordance with a relevant federal statute related to Indian governance. The Court rejected her petition for certiorari (petition for appeal), finding that the state’s adoption laws had a one-year statute of limitations, and the Plaintiff had failed to file her complaint on time.

There is no explicit prohibition in Alaska on LGBT couples jointly adopting a child, nor is there an explicit prohibition on LGBT individuals adopting the child of their same-sex partner.

Citations: In re T.N.F., 781 P.2d 973 (Alaska 1989).

Updated: Tue, September 08, 2009 - 11:00:23