Our eternal gratitude to US surrogate, by British couple in landmark case

A British couple who paid for a surrogate birth in America revealed today how they endured years of fertility treatment and miscarriages.

The couple, who are at the centre of a landmark legal judgment, also said the woman who carried their child had given them "the most incredible, life-changing gift".

In a statement issued to the Standard, they said: "We entered into this surrogacy arrangement after a great deal of thought and research, having exhausted all our other options for having a family, and following years of fertility treatment and several miscarriages.

"Our surrogate is a wonderful person who is now very firmly part of our family and will be part of our and our child's lives going forward. She gave us the most incredible life-changing gift which we will be ever grateful for."

In the High Court this week, the couple were recognised as the child's parents, and the court used its powers to sanction payments to surrogate
mothers which exceed basic expenses — effectively opening the way for more foreign so-called "rent-a-womb" cases, even where the birth mother makes a profit.

Legal experts now predict the number of couples using foreign surrogates is set to rise following this, the third court judgment of its kind.

The ruling came despite UK law prohibiting financial gain from a surrogacy arrangement, and the requirement for couples to obtain parental orders following a surrogate birth to be recognised as the legal parents, rather than the birth mother.

About 70 women in Britain have surrogate babies but many more couples desperate to start a family now travel to countries such as India for surrogate births.

The couple's solicitor, Natalie Gamble, said the judgment was a move towards recognising the situation of surrogate children, who can end up in legal limbo.

It made "the welfare of the child the court's paramount consideration", she added, and was "a step towards alleviating the plight of vulnerable
surrogate-born children".

Family law expert John Randle said the ruling "makes surrogacy more achievable now for UK couples".

He added: "For a lot of people,especially those with severe medical problems, surrogacy is the only way left for them to have a baby. This will not open the floodgates but it will become more accessible over time.

"Up until now couples have been nervous about what constitutes reasonable expenses. There has been very little guidance from judges. People are having to be advised so have been hesitant. This will increase the number of cases coming forward."