How Do Egg Donor Contracts Work?

Many people looking to conceive struggle with infertility and require help. Often, that fact only becomes known after trying to have a child for six months to a year or even longer. An egg donor might be the best solution for starting a family in that situation.

What Is an Egg Donor Contract?

An egg donor contract is a legal document that explains the rights and obligations of all the parties involved when someone seeks donor eggs to start a family. All parties are also protected under the terms of the contract. Egg donor contracts also state that the donor has no legal or custody rights to children born from their eggs.

What Is Included in Egg Donor Contracts?

If you need fertility assistance and are leaning toward donor eggs as an option, a New Jersey adoption attorney can help you once you find a donor and need to finalize a contract. The following are the details included in any such formal agreement.

All egg donor contracts include clauses that outline the intended parents’ rights and control over the donor eggs and any embryos that may result. This gives them the right to determine how and when to use any eggs, when to have their children through in vitro fertilization, when to donate the eggs to other people, or for medical research purposes if they so choose. In some cases, the donor might wish to know what happens with the eggs; if a part of the contract allows it, the donor has the right to see how the eggs are used.

A confidentiality clause prohibits all parties from disclosing one another’s identity without consent. In addition, egg donor contracts include timelines for medical procedures based on the intended parents’ and donors’ schedules and availability.

If the donor must travel to the fertility clinic of the intended parents’ choosing to undergo a screening and egg retrieval, travel expenses must be decided. The donor can then have periodic appointments for monitoring at a fertility clinic closer to her location. The intended parents pay the expenses for the donor’s travels.

All egg donor agreements include information about compensation paid to the donor. This is done through an escrow account. Fees are paid based on egg retrieval or after the donor receives fertility medications. Donors are paid even if a cycle fails or is canceled.

The intended parents and donor decide how much contact, if any, they want to maintain in the future. Egg donors are required to inform the intended parents of any changes in their health. This can extend into the future based on how future contact is handled.

There is also a provision regarding potential complications the egg donor might experience. Although many egg donor cycles occur without incident, this clause is necessary if something goes wrong. The intended parents are responsible for buying health insurance coverage for the donor.

Who Are Good Donor Egg Recipients?

There are many distinct reasons why a person or couple would make good donor egg recipients. Fertility issues and other reasons might make it challenging or impossible for some women to have biological children. Donor eggs are ideal for those who are over the age of 40. Once women pass 40, the number and quality of their eggs decrease. Even if a pregnancy does occur naturally, there is a higher risk of miscarriage due to chromosomal abnormalities. This is why donor eggs are a good option.

Women with primary ovarian insufficiency are good candidates for donor eggs. The condition causes the ovaries to fail between the ages of 15 to 44, making it difficult to become pregnant naturally.

Women are also good donor egg recipients if they have already reached menopause, and suffer from certain genetic disorders they don’t want to pass on to their children. In addition, some LGBTQ couples are good candidates for donor eggs. Women who have undergone a hysterectomy are also good candidates if they use a gestational carrier in combination with donor eggs.

If you need legal assistance entering an egg donor contract, contact a New Jersey adoption attorney at Cofsky & Zeidman LLC at your earliest convenience at (856) 429-5005 in Haddonfield or (856) 845-2555 in Woodbury.