Surrogate motherhood in laws of Serbia (de lege lata and de lege ferenda) and Republic of Macedonia

Abstract

The author in this paper studies the normative approach of Serbian legislator with regards to surrogate motherhood, which was banned by the Act on Infertility Treatment with Biomedically Assisted Fertilization from 2009 that is still in force. Whilst taking a critical stance towards such legislative solution, the author emphasizes significance of and justification for the novelty proposed in the Pre-Draft of Serbian Civil Code, which foresees introducing contracts on giving birth for another into Serbian law, i.e. allows for surrogate motherhood in domestic law. In light of this, particular focus is placed on the analysis of the proposed solutions, which refer to conditions for the application of this method of bio-medically supported fertilization, as well as its consequences in the light of family law and inheritance law. Bearing in mind the fact that surrogate motherhood has been permitted in the territory of former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, namely in the Macedonia, the author shall also examine relevant aspects of its legal regulation in that state. Basing the arguments on the solutions proposed in the Pre-Draft of Serbian Civil Code and current solutions in the laws of Macedonia, while also giving a brief overview of the legislation on this matter in other legal systems, the author offers suggestions as to the manner in which surrogate motherhood ought to be regulated in Serbian law de lege ferenda.

Keywords

• surrogate motherhood
• Serbian law
• Macedonian law