Surrogacy in private international law

Developments in reproductive medicine have provided various opportunities for individuals who are unable to conceive due to various health issues to have children. Surrogacy has become particularly attractive in recent years because it allows individuals to have a child who is genetically related to them. However, legal approaches to surrogacy vary significantly among different legal systems. While some legal systems explicitly prohibit surrogacy, others allow individuals to have children through this method. The lag in legal developments compared to medical advancements poses significant challenges to establishing the lineage of children born through this method. Although surrogacy is explicitly prohibited in Turkish law, it is not possible to prevent individuals living in Turkey from going to countries that permit this method to have children. In this study, firstly, the surrogacy method and its various forms will be explained, and the legal nature of the surrogacy contract, the obligations of the parties, and how the lineage of children born as a result of such a contract will be established will be discussed within the scope of substantive law. When the parties to surrogacy contracts are in different states, such contracts fall within the realm of private international law. Therefore, the applicable law to disputes arising from transnational surrogacy contracts and the limits of this law will be examined within the framework of the conflict of laws methodology, focusing on solutions that ensure compliance with the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights and the protection of the best interests of the child in establishing the lineage of children born through transnational surrogacy contracts. The study will also attempt to address the problems that may arise in the registration process in the civil registry based on the effects of foreign birth or recognition documents concerning a child born through transnational surrogacy and how to solve them. Additionally, the legal issues that may arise in a recognition lawsuit to ensure that the decisions made by foreign courts regarding the establishment of lineage between a child born through transnational surrogacy and prospective parents can have legal consequences in Turkey will be identified, and how to approach these issues will be explored.