Assisted Reproduction

PLEASE SEE OUR NEW ASSISTED REPRODUCTION DURING COVID-19 FAQ

Sperm Donor Agreements & Consults | Egg Donor Agreements | Surrogacy
Co-Maternity Agreements | Embryo Donation | Assisted Reproduction Technology Litigation

The Wald Law Group offers a broad range of services to parents and those seeking to become parents. With well over a decade providing legal services to those using assisted reproduction – including egg donation, embryo donation, sperm donation and surrogacy – The Wald Law Group is one of the most experienced family formation law offices in the San Francisco Bay Area. The firm gladly offers consultations to individuals and couples looking for ways to bring children into their lives and to provide the best and strongest legal protections for themselves, their children and their families. The firm also provides consultations to attorneys and service providers handling these types of cases.  Deborah H. Wald’s active membership in both the Academy of California Family Formation Lawyers and the American Academy of Assisted Reproductive Technology Attorneys allows her to remain current in this rapidly advancing area of law and gives her access to experts around the state and the country, to the benefit of the firm’s clients.

Sperm Donor Agreements & Consults top

The Wald Law Group creates agreements for women using known sperm donors to achieve pregnancy and for men providing sperm donations to assist friends or loved ones in achieving pregnancy. Each agreement drafted by The Wald Law Group is unique, specifically tailored to meet the needs of the individuals involved. The firm strives to help our clients identify the critical issues to include in their agreements, and assure that the agreements are legally accurate and protect all parties to the full extent possible under the law.

Ms. Wald has helped write the legislation that sets the legal standards for sperm donation in California, and is intimately familiar with the legal rules and community standards applicable to these cases.

The Wald Law Group also consults with fertility clinics and sperm banks to assure that agency contracts and agreements are up-to-date and legally accurate.

For more information see the latest Donor Insemination FAQ

Egg Donor Agreements top

The Wald Law Group drafts egg donor agreements on behalf of singles and couples using donated eggs to achieve pregnancy — either themselves, or with the assistance of a gestational carrier — and also reviews these same agreements on behalf of egg donors. The firm has experience working with many different kinds of people using donated eggs, from gay male couples starting the journey to parenthood to heterosexual couples struggling with infertility to single men looking to become single fathers. In each case, we conduct an in-depth assessment of our individual clients’ needs and concerns, and tailor the donor agreement to specifically address those concerns. We also make certain that the agreement is legally sound and covers all relevant issues.

Surrogacy top

The Wald Law Group works with clients looking to become parents through surrogacy to assure they are legally protected as parents as fully and as quickly as possible. Our firm does not find surrogates for clients. However, once intended parents have matched with a surrogate, we focus on providing the best long term legal protection to the intended parents, the surrogate, and the child, regardless of the state in which the baby is born. Our services include drafting and reviewing surrogacy contracts on behalf of either the intended parents or the surrogate; and handling the legal proceedings necessary to assure that the intended parents end up with full parental rights and that the surrogate is relieved of her parental responsibilities. We are particularly attuned to the legal needs of single people and gay and/or international couples becoming parents through surrogacy.

Ms. Wald has helped write the legislation that sets the legal standards for surrogacy in California, and is intimately familiar with the legal rules and community standards applicable to these cases.

For for more information see the latest Surrogacy Law FAQ

Co-Maternity Agreements top

The Wald Law Group provides agreements for lesbian clients engaged in “co-maternity” (also referred to as “egg sharing”) — i.e. using the eggs of one partner, fertilized with donor sperm, to produce embryos which are implanted in the womb of the other partner — in order to provide them with the best and strongest legal protections possible. The Wald Law Group advocates for these clients with doctors and the courts, making sure that both mothers’ legal/parental rights are protected from the point of conception. Ms. Wald was a pioneer in defining the legal parameters for lesbian couples engaging in co-maternity, and in 1999 she was named a “Lawyer of the Year” by California Lawyer for her groundbreaking work in this area.

Embryo Donation top

Estimates are that there are over half a million frozen embryos currently in storage around the United States. The Wald Law Group advises clients and drafts contracts to assist in the transfer of these embryos from one set of prospective parents to another. With very little law on the use or donation of frozen embryos, this is an area where even the best and most experienced attorneys are forced to take well-educated guesses. Ms. Wald’s membership in statewide and national assisted reproduction organizations allows her constant access to the most advanced thinking in this rapidly-evolving field.

Assisted Reproduction Technology Litigation top

People using assisted reproductive technologies (ART) to conceive children can find themselves in uncharted legal terrain. The Wald Law Group has a longstanding commitment to the representation of contemporary and non-traditional families, and broad experience handling cutting-edge cases at both the Trial and Appellate court levels. If you are experiening conflict with your spouse or partner on the use of cryo-preserved eggs, sperm or embryos, if feel that you have not received appropriate services from your ART agency or provider, or if you are encountering difficulties with the other parties to your donor or surrogacy agreement, we would be glad to arrange a legal consultation to determine how best to assist you in resolving – or, if necessary, litigating – your conflict.