Q&As

If a surrogate’s husband is automatically the second legal parent, can the biological father still have parental responsibility if he is registered on the birth certificate?

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Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk
Published on: 11 September 2019

Surrogacy occurs where a woman carries a child with the intention that that child will be given to other parents. Surrogacy can either be total (where the surrogate carries a fertilised egg) or partial, where the surrogate is the genetic mother but the father is the partner of the intended mother.

The surrogate mother is the legal mother of the child and is named on the birth certificate. She has parental responsibility for the child. If the surrogate mother is married at the time of implantation, her husband automatically becomes a legal parent and acquires parental responsibility unless it can be demonstrated that he did not consent to the surrogacy (per section 35 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 (HFEA 2008)). HFEA 2008, s 33 makes it clear that no other

Chris Bryden
Chris Bryden

Barrister, 4 King’s Bench Walk

Chris was called to the Bar in 2003 and since that time has built a busy practice across a range of areas, with an emphasis on Chancery practice. He enjoys a well-deserved reputation for his knowledge and expertise in each area. He appears regularly in the County Court, Family Court and the High Court as well as various specialist Tribunals, and has been involved in cases up to and including the Supreme Court. He regularly is instructed at Appellate level. He has extensive and wide-ranging experience particularly in the areas of wills, probate and inheritance disputes; property including adverse possession, boundary disputes and issues arising out of trusts of land; company and commercial work and financial remedies. Chris is head of the Family Group and head of the Property Team at 4KBW.

Chris is the author of numerous articles in publications such as the New Law Journal, Counsel and Family Law, amongst many other titles, and is the co-author of Social Media in the Workplace: A Handbook (2015, Jordan Publishing).

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Related legal acts:
Key definition:
Surrogate definition
What does Surrogate mean?

A woman who carries a child for another (and who typically has no biological connection with the child) with the intention that the child will be handed over after its birth.

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