Egg Donation FAQs

Egg Donation Contract, Egg Donor Agreement, Egg Donor Attorneys …

An egg donation agreement exists so that each party can state their intentions and acknowledge their legal responsibilities to one another. The agreement will also clearly state that the donor does not intend to parent any resulting child(ren) and does not wish to have physical or legal custody of any resulting child(ren).

Each state has different laws on egg donation. It is important for you to know not only the laws regarding egg donation, but also the steps you will need to take to establish yourselves as legal parents to any child that results. Reproductive Law Center has experienced attorneys throughout the United States to advise you no matter what state you choose to work in.

Because all of our work is completed via email, fax, phone and U.S. mail, you never need to come to our office, although you are very welcome to visit us any time.

Preparing and finalizing your egg donation agreement has various steps. The following briefly describes the process from start to finish:

  1. We will first send you a written retainer agreement to review. It will explain the services we will provide and the cost. Sign and date it, and mail it back to our office with your payment. We recommend that you also fax a copy of the signed agreement to us to speed the process along.
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  3. Once we have your signed retainer agreement, we will start work on your contract.
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  5. We will prepare the first draft of your egg donation agreement and send you a copy for your review. Read it carefully and call or email us with your questions, comments or suggested revisions. To keep the process moving forward without delays, you should plan to review the agreement and contact us within two days after you receive it.
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  7. We will then forward our final draft of the egg donation agreement to the egg donor’s attorney. If the egg donor requests any changes, we will review them and send you a redlined version, showing the requested changes. We will advise you accordingly and will then proceed towards finalizing the egg donation contract.
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  9. Once the egg donation contract is finalized, print out and sign the signature page, and fax it to our office. The egg donor will do the same.
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  11. Once we receive both faxed signature pages, we will issue a letter to your IVF Physician stating that contracts have been executed and that you (or the surrogate, if you are using one) are legally cleared to proceed with your cycle.
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  13. You will receive two originals from our office containing your egg donor’s initials and signatures. You will need to also initial the bottom of each page of both agreements, and sign both agreements, keeping one copy for yourself and mailing the other back to us in the envelope that we will enclose. We will send that original copy to your egg donor for her records. Our office will keep a scanned copy of the signed original agreement in your legal file.

If you will be using a surrogate as well as an egg donor, please see our Surrogacy Agreement FAQs page for a step-by-step explanation of how surrogacy agreements are prepared.

The finalization and execution of your egg donation agreement can take anywhere from one to four weeks, depending on how quickly the drafts of the agreement are reviewed and approved. Generally, we can produce a draft of your egg donation agreement within two business days of receiving your signed retainer agreement and the necessary information regarding your match with your egg donor. We must then account for the time needed for you to review the agreement, as well as the time needed for the egg donor to review the agreement with her attorney. On average, agreements are generally signed within two weeks.

Most IVF Physician’s offices require an egg donation agreement to be signed before your egg donor begins injectable medications for a cycle but not before undergoing screening. It is always best to have an egg donation agreement prepared and signed as soon as possible.

We offer single-price, all inclusive service packages, as well as reasonable hourly rates. Please call our office for further pricing information.

Although it is not required that your egg donor be represented by an attorney, it is in both your and your egg donor’s best interest to have an attorney who is knowledgeable about egg donation law explain the contract to your egg donor. It reduces the possibility that the egg donor will try to assert parental rights later.

Because most egg donation arrangements are anonymous, it is rare that an egg donor will try to assert any parental rights. In addition, most existing law on egg donation supports the rights of the recipient parents.

Because egg donation is generally an anonymous process, you will need to notify the egg donor agency during the time you are selecting an egg donor that you would like the option to meet the egg donor in the future. If the donor agrees to your request, your attorneys will then write the necessary language into the egg donation agreement before it is signed.

Most egg donation agreements refer to the parties by either the first names in combination with the first initial of their last names, or by their first names in combination with an identification number. As such, you would sign the contract with only your first name and first initial of your last name, or with your first name and identification number.

Why Choose Reproductive Law Center?

Confidentiality

All communications between Reproductive Law Center and our clients are secret and confidential by the law of attorney-client privilege, which is valid throughout the United States. To represent you, we must first have a written attorney-client agreement; then we can exchange confidential information freely.

Flat-rate Service Package & Free Initial Consultation

We accept referrals from assisted parents, from egg donor, embryo donor, and surrogacy agencies, from physicians, psychologists, and attorneys, and from other interested persons. Our law offices are fully equipped with highly trained paralegal and administrative staff to assist in serving our clients. We offer single-price, all-inclusive service packages or reasonable hourly fees. Your initial consultation is free.

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Reproductive Law Center is committed to providing you and your family with extraordinary legal support in all aspects of family formation, whether you reside in the United States or abroad. We provide a free initial consultation and look forward to helping you.
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