Quick Episode Overview & Key Topics Discussed:
- How Meryl found herself in the surrogacy world.
- The new and exciting surrogacy law changes in Michigan.
- How often do surrogacy laws change in states?
- How much research is behind every match/surrogacy journey.
- Why transparency and education are so crucial to both surrogates and intended parents.
- Thoughts on independent journeys and who are the best candidates for indy journeys.
- Why agencies should be regulated and how to do your do diligence when looking for yours.
- When should benefit package negotiations take place.
- The dangers of cutting corners in your surrogacy journey.
- The enormous responsibility within the surrogacy industry.
- Meryl’s advice to every intended parent.
- And so much more…
On this episode of “Surrogacy Is A Podcast”, Casey and Sunshine were overjoyed to sit down and talk with a lifetime leader in fertility law, Meryl Rosenberg.
Meryl is an attorney in practice, licensed in Maryland, DC, New Jersey, and Michigan, who concentrates on cases involving assisted reproductive technologies, as well as second and step-parent adoptions, and other parentage processes involved in assisted reproduction. She also offers full surrogacy consulting services through her company, ART Parenting. Surrogacy Is has had the absolute pleasure of working with Meryl many times. In fact, Meryl has referred numerous intended parents to Surrogacy Is, and we’re so thankful for her partnership (more on that later).
Meryl found herself in the reproductive and surrogacy field, sort of by accident. She had friends who started Shady Grove Fertility, and at the time, they needed help finding gestational carriers and donors for their patients. Through that experience, she learned many things along the way, especially how to put in place better (and then later, even better) practices, including the addition of the mental health evaluation and when to introduce that during a surrogacy screening. Now she doesn’t focus on matching anymore, but instead continues to offer education and legal support to intended parents who are just starting their journey.
Meryl, who has been a Michigan-barred attorney since 1986, was thrilled by the shift in Michigan’s surrogacy laws—and our team at Surrogacy Is was thrilled to have her explain the changes to us and everything they entail.
Before the Michigan Family Protection Act (MFPA) took effect on April 2nd, 2025, Michigan had a strict ban on surrogacy, including gestational surrogacy, since 1988. This meant that surrogacy could actually be criminalized. Now, Michigan has completely shifted its stance on surrogacy.
“A lot of us have worked together behind the scenes through the years trying to accomplish change in a positive fashion, and I think Michigan has taken the best of the best,” says Meryl.
In short, the changes in Michigan’s laws are not just for surrogacy, but it’s a nine-bill package that is really about family. The Act protects the family’s and child’s rights to know who their parents are, legally, from birth. Which is a win for so many wonderful families!
When it comes to surrogacy, the law states:
- Both a gestational carrier and the intended parents must be at least 21 years old.
- There needs to be a signed contract before any medical procedure to accomplish pregnancy.
- Both the gestational carrier and intended parents must have independent representation through Michigan-licensed attorneys.
- The gestational carrier must complete a medical evaluation regarding the surrogacy agreement.
- Both the surrogate and the intended parents are required to undergo a mental health evaluation.
- Surrogates can be legally compensated for their journey.
Some states’ surrogacy laws may have certain exclusions. These may include limitations for those who are single parents or in same-sex couples, but luckily, in Michigan, there are no exclusions. Any parent can grow their family through the Michigan Family Protection Act, which was created to protect families, regardless of how they are formed. There has also been a lot of exciting education happening throughout the judiciary, so they are now well-prepared and set up for success.
Meryl has spoken to many intended parents who have been eager for this change to take effect. She also jokes (respectfully, of course) that many in the industry see this change as opening up the opportunity for Michigan to become a new hub for surrogates, but she doesn’t think that will be the case.
“It is a very comprehensive law, don’t get me wrong, and it does open a large state now to potential gestational carriers and it absolutely gives intended parents that option of trying to find someone local to them, but you know having been in the field for so long, there’s just a lot that goes into being a gestational carrier,” Meryl says.
A lot of people are shocked to find out that only 1 to 2% of all applicants actually qualify to move forward with surrogacy. New potential surrogates in Michigan will still need to have the same screenings and education to ensure they can move forward with a safe journey. With the changes in Michigan, many intended parents are excited about the possibility of now being able to have a local surrogate. While it would be nice, Meryl, Sunshine, and Casey want to remind everyone that local matches can be rare.
“You might actually be closer to someone in Ohio, and someone somewhere else just might be a better fit. You can still build a beautiful relationship without proximity,” says Casey. And Meryl also wants to remind everyone that, even though you can get a parentage order in Michigan now, the caveat to consider is what happens with that court order in the state where the baby is born. That’s why she says it’s so important to work with lawyers who will look at the whole picture and dive deep into all the scenarios to help everyone be better prepared for a surrogacy journey.
For a lot of intended parents (and even sometimes surrogates, actually), it’s really easy to be caught up on speed. Everyone is so excited about the journey ahead that sometimes they are just eager to get things moving. But Meryl cautions that speed, while nice, shouldn’t be the number one priority in a surrogacy journey.
“It’s not all about speed, it’s about the right fit and making sure all the i’s are dotted and T’s crossed along the way so you don’t end up with false starts. Because if you’re matched quickly and then your surrogate doesn’t meet the parameters of your fertility center, it’s not going to move forward anyway. Then you’re going to have to hit restart,” says Meryl.
Meryl, Sunshine, and Casey all agree that working with the right surrogacy team—clinics, lawyers, agencies, etc.—who have guardrails in place to help keep a surrogate and intended parents on the right and ethical track is essential. So is transparency, as well as early and extensive education. This includes explaining benefits packages and the importance of including certain things, like bonuses and life insurance policies. It also ensures that everyone involved understands everything. There should always be an opportunity for an open conversation at any point throughout the journey.
Meryl, Sunshine, and Casey also discussed the importance of ethical agencies and why they actually believe that all agencies should be regulated.
“We know we’re not in the popular vote in that (believing agencies should be regulated), but it’s just because we’re doing it right. But we also know the alternative is that there are agencies out there who aren’t. And that’s putting risk on a surrogate, the baby, and the intended parents… surrogacy is just not something you can cut corners on,” says Casey.
“Like when you think about what it is that we’re helping people do, and if everyone remembered that huge responsibility on our shoulders, maybe everyone would slow down and do things step by step. Remember the why on what you’re doing,” says Meryl.
When Meryl meets with a new intended parent for a consultation, she says she always tries to understand exactly where they are in the process and help them with as much of the education as she can. One of the first things she advises is connecting with a fertility clinic before moving forward with anything else. While many professionals in the industry are familiar with the medical procedures, it’s always best to get a personal consultation so that intended parents know what the medical piece is going to look like for their unique situation. She also says they need to understand the different kinds of matching programs and ways to find a gestational carrier.
“I try and give them (new IPs) homework. How can they think about what feels right for them? I will absolutely talk about the whole process and what it will look like beginning to end and help educate them about the time it involves, what pieces are involved, and why personal choice is so important,” says Meryl.
The whole process of surrogacy is based on a foundation of trust. Every single part of it. You need to trust your chosen partners in every part of your team. If you don’t trust someone who’s a part of your team, then you shouldn’t work together. This is the exact reason why Meryl says she doesn’t take her referrals lightly.
“When intended parents ask me for referrals, it was important to me to learn who I was referring to and to only be referring to practices that I thought checked all those boxes that were what I think are best practices in terms of screening gestational carriers and what their matching process is. And with Surrogacy Is, the proof is in the pudding. As we have worked together, my clients have been so happy, and it’s been a partnership that’s working so well,” says Meryl.
And the love and respect are reciprocated very much by our team to Meryl.
If you’d like to listen to more of Sunshine and Casey’s conversation with Meryl, including their thoughts on independent journeys, contract negotiations, cattiness in the industry—plus so much more, check out the full episode here.
If you’d like to learn more about Meryl’s company, ART Parenting, or connect with her, please use the link here.
