He then had to apply to the court to adopt the baby boy as his own child. New Zealand law does not currently afford any automatic rights to the intending parents of a child born via surrogacy. "There is an uncomfortable inference available that [the man’s] relationship with [the woman] existed purely for the purpose of satisfying the requirements of the surrogacy agreement," Judge Pidwell said. Judge Pidwell said that courts around the world had grappled with cases where surrogacy laws clash with children who have already been born, sometimes illegally. "The focus of the New Zealand courts, however, is to honour the child’s rights, rather than punish the parents," Judge Pidwell said.

Source: Otago Daily Times February 07, 2026 14:15 UTC