The rule appears in two forms in international surrogacy, and both are non-negotiable: two jurisdictions need two sets of lawyers, and the surrogate needs her own solicitor. Arrangements that economise on either are the ones that go wrong.
Two Jurisdictions
Where a child is born abroad, two legal systems are engaged and they answer entirely different questions. Local law governs what happens there: the surrogate’s status and protections under that country’s law, the effect of any local court order or birth certificate, what consents are required and when, and what documents can be obtained. Irish law governs what is recognised here: who is a legal parent in this State, your child’s citizenship position, what travel documentation is available, and every downstream consequence in guardianship, medical consent, schooling and succession. A lawyer in one jurisdiction cannot advise on the other, and should not try. This firm advises on the Irish side only, works alongside your local lawyers, and does not state or imply that any arrangement is lawful or unlawful in another country. The practical failure mode is almost always sequencing: families engage local lawyers for the arrangement and take Irish advice afterwards, at which point decisions about jurisdiction, genetics and payment structure — each of which has significant Irish consequences — have already been made and are expensive or impossible to unwind. Engage both early.
The Surrogate’s Own Solicitor
This is the more important of the two, and the one most likely to be quietly skipped. The interests of a surrogate and of intending parents are genuinely different and occasionally opposed. She is undertaking a pregnancy, with real physical risk, and will be the legal mother of the child; she is entitled to a lawyer whose only duty is to her and who is free to advise her not to proceed. Independent legal advice for the surrogate and for the intending parents is contemplated by the 2024 Act itself, and it is right in principle regardless of commencement. So: any proposal that one solicitor act for everyone, or that the intending parents’ lawyer will “look after” the surrogate’s interests, should be treated as a serious warning sign about the whole arrangement. On fees, intending parents commonly pay for her advice, which is normal and permissible — but paying for advice does not purchase it, her solicitor acts for her alone, and that should be explicit in writing at the outset. A surrogate sent to a solicitor chosen and instructed by the intending parents has not had independent advice in any meaningful sense, whatever the file records. The full page on agreements is here.
Why this protects intending parents too: an arrangement in which the surrogate was poorly advised and poorly protected is a less stable arrangement, and one more likely to be questioned later — including when a court eventually considers whether to make a parental order. Proper independent advice on her side is not a cost to be minimised. It is part of what makes the arrangement hold.
Planning an arrangement, or being asked to sign one? 01 5827148.
Richard O’Shea — Solicitor & TEP
Solicitor at Mary Molloy Solicitors (established 1981) and a TEP of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. The firm advises on the legal position of families formed through surrogacy and assisted reproduction — parentage, guardianship, birth registration, travel documentation, and the succession and estate planning consequences that the current gap in the law creates. This is a legal practice: it is not an agency, does not match or introduce surrogates, and takes no part in any commercial arrangement. Consultations by telephone, video or in person. 01 5827148 · richardoshea@marymolloysolicitors.com · LinkedIn
General information, not legal advice. This website contains general information about Irish law relating to surrogacy and assisted human reproduction. It is not legal advice and does not create a solicitor—client relationship. Every family’s position turns on its own facts, and advice on yours requires a consultation.
The law is changing and this page has a date. The position described across this site is stated as at 31 July 2026. The principal surrogacy provisions of the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Act 2024 were not commenced at that date. Commencement orders can be made at short notice and will alter this position materially. Confirm the current position before acting.
This is a legal practice, not an agency. Mary Molloy Solicitors provides legal advice and representation. It does not operate as a surrogacy agency, does not match, introduce or recruit surrogates or intending parents, does not advertise for or on behalf of any surrogate, does not recommend or receive any payment from any clinic, agency or intermediary, and takes no part in arranging or facilitating any payment beyond the provision of legal services. Nothing on this site is an offer or invitation to enter any commercial surrogacy arrangement.
Foreign law and medical matters. Where an arrangement involves another jurisdiction, the law of that jurisdiction applies to what happens there and independent legal advice must be taken locally — nothing here states or implies that any arrangement is lawful or unlawful in any other country. Nothing on this site is medical advice, and questions about treatment, suitability or risk are for your treating clinicians.
Fees. Fees are agreed in writing with the client at the outset. In contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.
Tax. Nothing on this website is tax advice. Where parentage affects succession, gift or inheritance treatment, those questions belong with your accountant or tax adviser and with Revenue’s own guidance, and should be addressed before any step is taken.