Gestational Surrogacy is permitted because no statute or published case law prohibits it. In J.F.v.D.B.,897 A.2d1261 (2006), the Pennsylvania Superior Court struck down a trial court’s holdings that a surrogacy contract was contrary to public policy and that a Gestational Carrier was the “legal mother.” That decision opened the door for Gestational Surrogacy to grow in Pennsylvania. In practice, the application of surrogacy law varies greatly by county, and sometimes by judge, particularly when donors are used.
In the case Glover v. Junior, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court established a new legal pathway to parentage, recognizing “intent-based parentage” for children conceived through assisted reproductive technology (ART). This landmark decision allows non-biological, non-gestational parents to be legally recognized as parents when they jointly intended to conceive and raise a child together. The case involved a same-sex couple who used IVF and a sperm donor, where one partner carried the child and the other participated in the process with the shared intent to parent. Glover v. Junior, No. 9 EAP 2024 (Pa. Mar. 20, 2025)
Note: This situation typically arises if the child is born outside the state. The parents then return to Pennsylvania to obtain a second parent adoption or stepparent adoption in Pennsylvania.
Traditional Surrogacy – when the surrogate is the genetic parent or ova provider – is permitted in Pennsylvania because no statute or published case law prohibits it. However, a pre-birth order is not possible because the traditional surrogate cannot terminate her parental rights until 72 hours after the child’s birth. Traditional surrogates also cannot be compensated.
Montvale, NJ
melissab@reproductivelawyer.com
(201) 505-0099
Orefield, PA & New Jersey
Dominic@farolelawoffice.com
www.farolelawoffice.com
Philadelphia, PA
tpalmer@jplaw.com
www.jplaw.com
(215) 843-6000
Harrisburg, Carlisle, and Allentown, PA
ssacks@sasllp.com
www.sasllp.com
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Surrogacy laws are different from state to state across the US. We have compiled the leading state-by-state surrogacy law map that features laws as actually practiced in all 50 states. The US Surrogacy Law Map™ is protected by US Copyright laws and is the sole and exclusive property of Creative Family Connections LLC (“CFC”).
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