Callout for gay dads
Sunday March 6, 2016

Callout for gay dads

Sunday, March 06, 2016
Surrogacy in Australia is still a recent phenomenon.  Even though my first surrogacy case was as long ago as 1988, surrogacy in Australia really did not take off until about 2010, with law changes in the eastern States. The average surrogacy journey takes between 18 months and 2 years, and up to 4 years. In some States, there are very few surrogacies. For example, in Tasmania, there is only one known completed surrogacy through the IVF clinic. Research from a couple of years ago highlighted that for every domestic surrogacy, another 11 couples went overseas instead.

For fertility counsellors, this has been  for many a very steep learning curve. I am lucky that I deal with surrogacy cases day in, day out, from across the country and across the globe. Very few fertility counsellors have that day to day exposure to surrogacy and are learning as they are going.

Most fertility counsellors have had plenty of experience helping childless straight couples- but much less experience helping gay couples. This is no criticism of them, it’s just the nature of the territory and our changing world.

In June there will be a meeting in Brisbane for fertility counsellors, run by the Australian and New Zealand Infertility Counsellors Association. The organisor wants gay dads or gay intended dads- who have either completed, planned or intended to undertake the surrogacy journey-  to speak with the fertility counsellors at the meeting.

If you are interested, please email me at spage@harringtonfamilylawyers.com , and I’ll put you in contact with the organisor.

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Australia's Surrogacy Law Reform: A Lawyer's Wish List for National Consistency

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Family Law Section Law Council of Australia Award
Member of Queensland law society
Family law Practitioners Association
International Academy of Family Lawyers - IAFL
Mediator Standards Board