Natalie Gamble speaks at the American Bar Association International Law Conference in London

Natalie was delighted to join the ABA’s International Law Conference in London on 23 September, speaking as part of its first ever panel to discuss global IVF.

Speaking to an international legal audience, Natalie discussed international surrogacy as a key issue in fertility globalisation, describing how restrictive and prohibitive legal frameworks in many developed countries have driven increasing numbers of intended parents to seek surrogacy across borders. The US has always been the most popular international surrogacy destination for parents seeking surrogacy, and surrogacy there operates within an established framework of strong ethics and clear legal status. Other (less expensive) options for parents have shifted over the years, but currently include Canada, Ukraine, Georgia, Mexico, Colombia and Nigeria.

Natalie spoke about how longstanding research demonstrates that surrogacy can be managed positively and ethically, to the benefit of all involved, but that rising global demand has created a space for abuses from bad actors in unregulated destinations who exploit both vulnerable surrogates and desperate intended parents.  

As lawyers, we play a key role in helping families to navigate the intersection of different laws on parentage and nationality in the absence of any coherent international law framework, and that safeguards the children born. However, lawyers working in this sector often go far beyond that, supporting intended parents to make ethical choices which shape how surrogacy works more widely, tackling abuses, and educating policy-makers about the complex realities of surrogacy on the ground.