Rights of Child in Surrogacy Arrangements

Surrogacy arrangements give rise to a unique category of children who may have two to five parents, biological, gestational, and intentional, scattered across different jurisdictions. This article examines the rights of children born out of surrogacy transactions from a child-rights perspective. It analyses the best interests of the child principle as applied to surrogacy disputes, the risks of commodification, the psychological and developmental concerns documented in the Brazier Report, the rights recognised under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), and the judicial approach to custody and parentage. The article argues that while surrogacy may offer the opportunity of life to children who would otherwise not exist, the regulatory framework must place the welfare of the child at its centre, ensuring that the child's rights to identity, bonding, safe home, and non-discrimination are fully protected.