Over the past three decades, advances in reproductive technologies have expanded possibilities for individuals and couples unable to conceive due to infertility, disability, or sexual orientation. International paid surrogacy, while providing many with the opportunity to create genetically related families, has also raised significant ethical, legal, and human rights concerns. The ease of travel, healthcare availability, and economic disparities between intending parents and surrogates have fueled a global surrogacy market, but its reputation has been undermined by allegations of exploitation and abuse. Current regulation largely depends on individual states, leading to a patchwork of policies: some jurisdictions ban surrogacy outright, others permit it under regulation, while many do not regulate it directly. Though proponents of free market and contract law argue that existing frameworks adequately govern the practice, recurring conflicts involving cross-border family law and human rights demonstrate otherwise. Calls for a global ban—such as Pope Francis’ 2024 condemnation and the 2023 Casablanca Declaration—have not convinced surrogacy-providing states to enact such a ban. Meanwhile, the Hague Conference on Private International Law’s Experts’ Group has worked toward an international convention culminating in a 2022 report that this Article argues still cedes excessive power to private actors and intermediaries. This Article contends that effective regulation requires robust domestic legislation, aligned with states’ human rights obligations, to complement international law and contract frameworks. It argues against bans and instead calls for regulation that prioritizes surrogates’ autonomy, intending parents’ right to family formation, and surrogate-born children’s rights. Such an approach reframes surrogacy regulation away from notions of baby selling, toward a model that ensures dignity, accountability, and legal recognition for all parties involved.
