Spain and France take different paths on recognising parentage after overseas surrogacy

Development summary

Antonia Durán Ayago’s article in the Anuario Español de Derecho Internacional Privado argues that the Spanish Supreme Court Civil Chamber is wrong in its approach to parentage created through surrogacy abroad, and that the French Cour de cassation adopts the sounder line by allowing recognition under a more measured use of international public policy and a child-centred perspective. It sets the Spanish position, reinforced by the April 2025 instruction that barred recognition of such parentage, against the recent French approach to recognition.