Divorce and Its Effect on Surrogacy Arrangements

While they were married, actress Sherri Shepherd and her now estranged husband, Lamar Sally, entered into a surrogacy agreement with a Pennsylvania woman when they decided to start a family. Before that baby was born, however, the couple filed for divorce (he in California and she in New Jersey), and Ms. Shepherd was ordered to pay support the child. Ms. Shepherd sought to have the surrogacy agreement voided. A Pennsylvania court denied her request and, more recently, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld that ruling. See “Actress Sherri Shepherd loses surrogacy case, paying support.”

For some couples facing fertility issues and other factors that prevent them from beginning a family by traditional means, surrogacy is a viable solution. But it is a very complicated arrangement with many gray areas.  NJ state lawmakers last year grappled with a bill that would have clarified matters for couples entering into “gestational carrier” agreements with persons willing to bear their children for them. See “N.J. Senate approves bill expanding definition of surrogate parenting.” That bill, however, was vetoed by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie last July, leaving surrogacy arrangements a very tenuous solution.