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68 Drake L. Rev. Discourse 101 (2018)

handle is hein.journals/dralours9 and id is 1 raw text is: SURROGACY AND PARENTAL RIGHTS: A NEED FOR UNIFORMITY IN THE LAW ABSTRACT Surrogacy has been a feasible way for various individuals and couples to have children since the early 1980's. Thanks to the development of remarkable scientific technologies, surrogacy has been particularly beneficial for people who strive to build a family but struggle with infertility. By 2008, 1,400 babies were born to surrogates. Surrogacy is now commonplace in society with celebrities such as Elton John, Nicole Kidman, and Sarah Jessica Parker openly discussing their reliance on surrogates to have children. Nevertheless, and perhaps unsurprisingly, the law is not keeping up with these scientific and societal developments. Four states currently ban surrogacy agreements, fourteen states allow at least one form ofsurrogacy agreements, and the remainder of the states-including Iowa-do not clearly address surrogacy agreements. This Note discusses how advancements in scientific technology have allowed otherwise infertile people to have children by contracting with surrogate mothers. It then outlines the hodgepodge of laws addressing surrogacy throughout the United States and highlights ways in which this inconsistency in the law affects the rights of the parties involved in surrogacy agreements. Finally, this Note proposes that advocates of surrogacy in each state-especially in states that have not clearly addressed the issue should urge state legislators to adopt uniform legislation on surrogacy in order to alleviate confusion and increase judicial efficiency. An example of such uniform legislation is briefly discussed at the end of this Note. TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction .................................. ......102 II. Modern Society's Increased Use of Assisted Reproductive Technology Generally and Surrogacy Specifically ...... ........103 A. Surrogacy as a Solution to Infertility ...................103 B. Scientific Advancements in Assisted Reproductive Technology and Surrogacy Availability .................104 1. Evolution of Assisted Reproductive Technology ................104 2. Types of Surrogacy Agreements Available ..........................105 3. Increased Use of Surrogates ...........................106 III. Variation in State Laws .......................................107 A. States Prohibiting Surrogacy Agreements ...............107 B. States Expressly Allowing Surrogacy ...................110 C. States that Do Not Clearly Address Surrogacy ..... .......110 101

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