Ethical Research On Legal Regulation Of Surrogacy

Surrogacy, as the most intriguing byproduct of ITF-ET, has come into public notice gradually. The ethical arguments and legal regulation relating to surrogacy have been a focus of the attention of academic world. Based on the close relationship between morality and law, discussing legal regulation of surrogacy from the angle of the ethics is necessary and urgent.This paper is mainly divided into three parts:The first part introduces the conception, classification, characteristics and assisted reproductive technology which is closely related to surrogacy, including AI and ITF-ET. This part summarizes legal regulation of surrogacy, including whether countries and regions exist surrogacy law, whether surrogacy is legal, and specific legal issues about surrogacy. This part also expounds the moral root of surrogacy from three aspects of deontology, teleology and feminist care ethics.In the second part, countries and regions which are using different surrogacy law are divided into three types, which are "completely open","completely prohibition" and "limited open". Ethical analysis is made for the three types of surrogacy law. The completely open legal regulation in California, US and India violates the ethical demand of "a person cannot be used", attributes gestating offspring to naked money relationship and materializes children born from surrogate mothers. The completely prohibition legal regulation in the Chinese mainland, France and Japan expresses the position of opposing commercialize gestating offspring but denies the demand of getting children through surrogacy from infertile couples. The limited open legal regulation in UK, Taiwan and Hong Kong embodies the recognition to the moral rationality of infertile couples getting children, confirms the noble virtue of surrogate mother. However, there is imperfectness in confirming paternity, privacy and right to know of surrogacy, cost compensation to surrogate mother, and so on.The third part analyzes the development tendency of legal regulation of surrogacy and proposes the combination of law and ethics is a necessary choice of regulating surrogacy. Using an entry point that relationship between morality and law, this part points out the necessity of using combination of law and ethics to regulate surrogacy. This part expounds legal ethics basis of ethical research on legal regulation of surrogacy. One is it embodies inner unification of morality and law. Two is it conducts the ethical root cause of whether surrogacy is legal. The part proposes the legal ethical principle of regulating surrogacy. One is respecting surrogate mothers. Personal dignity and reasonable will of surrogate mother should be fully respected. Two is protecting offspring. The offspring of surrogacy has no autonomy and miss hard-to-show free will, so they should be gave more protection and care. Three is maintaining the steady of family. The rationality of surrogacy consists largely it satisfying the need of infertile couples. Maintaining the steady of family is original vision and final destination. Four is justice. It involves the interests of parties and the distribution of medical resources. Five is preventing commercialization. Commercialized surrogacy which attributes gestating offspring to naked money relationship should be firmly rejected. This part also discusses surrogacy legislation with the guidance of ethics. It points out that surrogacy legislation is imperative. It also discusses the surrogacy agreement, the decision of parenthood, the regulation of intermediaries and surrogacy behavior, the right to know and privacy relating to surrogacy.