Reconceiving Quebec's Laws on Surrogate Motherhood

Abstract

In September 2016, the Quebec government announced that it intends to reform the Civil Code of Québec to recognize and further regulate surrogate motherhood. Quebec's Minister of Justice indicated that in bringing forward these changes, the government will consider recommendations provided in a 2015 report by the Comité consultative sur le droit de la famille (the Comité). This article explores the history, objectives and effects of Quebec's current legal responses to surrogacy and examines the strengths and weaknesses of the Comité's proposed reforms. It argues that while the report's proposals would better support and protect surrogate mothers and children born through surrogacy than Quebec's current regime, the Comité's recommendations do not adequately account for intended parents' interests or recognize diverse family forms. It recommends that the Quebec government look to British Columbia's Family Law Act and Ontario's Children's Law Reform Act for further inspiration for how to reimagine Quebec's surrogacy laws.

Keywords: Surrogacy, surrogate motherhood, Quebec, family law, assisted reproduction, contracts, Canada