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Vi köpte ett barn, vad nu? En uppsats om reglering av surrogatmoderskap och barnets bästa

Ekman, Nefeli LU (2024) LAGF03 20242
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract (Swedish)
Surrogatmoderskap är inte tillåtet inom svensk hälso- och sjukvård. Samtidigt finns det inget direkt förbud mot surrogatarrangemang i svensk rätt. Uppsatsen belyser det rättsliga vakuum som uppstår när svenskar ingår surrogatarrangemang utomlands och därefter återvänder till Sverige med barn som saknar klart fastställda föräldrar enligt svensk rätt.
I centrum för framställningen står principen om barnets bästa och hur denna påverkas av att moderskapspresumtionen (mater est-regeln) fortfarande innebär att surrogatmodern anses vara barnets rättsliga mor. Genom faderskapspresumtionen eller fastställande av faderskap kan den genetiska fadern bli rättslig förälder, men för faderns partner återstår ofta närståendeadoption som alternativ –... (More)
Surrogatmoderskap är inte tillåtet inom svensk hälso- och sjukvård. Samtidigt finns det inget direkt förbud mot surrogatarrangemang i svensk rätt. Uppsatsen belyser det rättsliga vakuum som uppstår när svenskar ingår surrogatarrangemang utomlands och därefter återvänder till Sverige med barn som saknar klart fastställda föräldrar enligt svensk rätt.
I centrum för framställningen står principen om barnets bästa och hur denna påverkas av att moderskapspresumtionen (mater est-regeln) fortfarande innebär att surrogatmodern anses vara barnets rättsliga mor. Genom faderskapspresumtionen eller fastställande av faderskap kan den genetiska fadern bli rättslig förälder, men för faderns partner återstår ofta närståendeadoption som alternativ – vilket försvåras av bland annat samtyckeskrav. Två vägledande rättsfall (NJA 2006 s. 505 och NJA 2019 s. 509) illustrerar komplexiteten, där syskon exempelvis kunnat bli barnets rättsliga föräldrar i ena fallet, och att en amerikansk dom om moderskap i andra fallet erkändes i Sverige av hänsyn till barnets bästa, trots avsaknad av lagstöd.
Uppsatsen diskuterar möjliga lagändringar som skulle kunna förhindra att barn hamnar i ett rättsligt ingenmansland, exempelvis att avskaffa samtyckeskravet i närståendeadoption eller att införa en generell möjlighet att erkänna utländska fastställanden av moderskap. Samtidigt påtalas riskerna med att helt öppna för surrogatmoderskap, då det är ett etiskt ifrågasättbart förfarande.
Slutsatsen är att den nuvarande ordningen inte ger barn födda ur surrogatarrangemang tillräcklig rättstrygghet och att svensk lagstiftning kan behöva reformeras, men att det råder delade meningar om hur en sådan reglering ska utformas utan att indirekt uppmuntra surrogatarrangemang. Frågan förblir omdebatterad och någon tydlig lösning har ännu inte presenterats. (Less)
Abstract
Surrogacy is not permitted within Swedish healthcare services. However, there is no explicit prohibition against surrogacy arrangements under Swedish law. This thesis highlights the legal vacuum that arises when Swedish citizens engage in surrogacy arrangements abroad and subsequently return to Sweden with children whose legal parentage is not clearly established under Swedish law.
The core of the discussion revolves around the principle of the best interests of the child and how this is affected by the presumption of maternity (the ma-ter est rule), which continues to designate the surrogate mother as the child’s legal mother. Through the presumption of paternity or the establishment of paternity, the genetic father can become the legal... (More)
Surrogacy is not permitted within Swedish healthcare services. However, there is no explicit prohibition against surrogacy arrangements under Swedish law. This thesis highlights the legal vacuum that arises when Swedish citizens engage in surrogacy arrangements abroad and subsequently return to Sweden with children whose legal parentage is not clearly established under Swedish law.
The core of the discussion revolves around the principle of the best interests of the child and how this is affected by the presumption of maternity (the ma-ter est rule), which continues to designate the surrogate mother as the child’s legal mother. Through the presumption of paternity or the establishment of paternity, the genetic father can become the legal parent. However, for the father’s partner, stepchild adoption often remains the only option, which is complicated by requirements such as obtaining the fathers consent. Two prec-edent-setting cases (NJA 2006 s. 505 and NJA 2019 s. 509) illustrate the complexity of the issue: in one case, siblings were legally recognized as the child’s parents, while in another, a U.S. court ruling on maternity was recog-nized in Sweden out of consideration for the child’s best interests, despite a lack of legal support for such recognition.
The thesis discusses potential legislative changes that could prevent children from ending up in a legal limbo, such as abolishing the consent requirement in stepchild adoption or introducing a general possibility to recognize foreign rulings on maternity. At the same time, it highlights the risks of fully allowing surrogacy, as it remains an ethically controversial practice.
The conclusion is that the current legal framework does not provide sufficient legal security for children born through surrogacy arrangements. Swedish legislation may require reform, but there is significant debate over how such regulation should be structured without indirectly encouraging surrogacy. The issue remains contentious, and no clear solution has yet been proposed. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Ekman, Nefeli LU
supervisor
organization
course
LAGF03 20242
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
familjerätt, surrogatmoderskap
language
Swedish
id
9180463
date added to LUP
2025-03-20 13:56:14
date last changed
2025-03-20 13:56:14
@misc{9180463,
  abstract     = {{Surrogacy is not permitted within Swedish healthcare services. However, there is no explicit prohibition against surrogacy arrangements under Swedish law. This thesis highlights the legal vacuum that arises when Swedish citizens engage in surrogacy arrangements abroad and subsequently return to Sweden with children whose legal parentage is not clearly established under Swedish law.
The core of the discussion revolves around the principle of the best interests of the child and how this is affected by the presumption of maternity (the ma-ter est rule), which continues to designate the surrogate mother as the child’s legal mother. Through the presumption of paternity or the establishment of paternity, the genetic father can become the legal parent. However, for the father’s partner, stepchild adoption often remains the only option, which is complicated by requirements such as obtaining the fathers consent. Two prec-edent-setting cases (NJA 2006 s. 505 and NJA 2019 s. 509) illustrate the complexity of the issue: in one case, siblings were legally recognized as the child’s parents, while in another, a U.S. court ruling on maternity was recog-nized in Sweden out of consideration for the child’s best interests, despite a lack of legal support for such recognition.
The thesis discusses potential legislative changes that could prevent children from ending up in a legal limbo, such as abolishing the consent requirement in stepchild adoption or introducing a general possibility to recognize foreign rulings on maternity. At the same time, it highlights the risks of fully allowing surrogacy, as it remains an ethically controversial practice.
The conclusion is that the current legal framework does not provide sufficient legal security for children born through surrogacy arrangements. Swedish legislation may require reform, but there is significant debate over how such regulation should be structured without indirectly encouraging surrogacy. The issue remains contentious, and no clear solution has yet been proposed.}},
  author       = {{Ekman, Nefeli}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Vi köpte ett barn, vad nu? En uppsats om reglering av surrogatmoderskap och barnets bästa}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}