# Life Insurance and Wills?



## Diane72 (Oct 29, 2007)

Hi All,


I'm doing surrogacy with my sister and I wanted to put life insurance in place for her- does anyone know who offers this/does it have to be specialised for the surrogacy situation?


Also I need to put a will in place for my sister. We've been in touch with a lawyer and they said they can only see one of us not both of us (they will not see both the intended parents and the surrogate) so what did others do, do you have to see separate lawyers in order to do wills/get advice for each of you? Was this the same for you? (my sister and I would much have preferred to have just gone together and discussed it).


Thanks


Dx


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## Marie2008 (May 30, 2008)

Hi Diane,

I can't answer your questions but there are great free surrogacy forums where you can ask these questions, below.

I am sure you'll get answers pretty quick especially on surrogacynetwork as there are people doing it independently on this site ie not through an agency.

Go to the forum on the COTS website http://www.surrogacy.org.uk/, 
www.surrogacynetwork.co.uk
www.http://excoboard.com/friendshipthroughsurrogacy

I am just starting to look at host surrogacy too.....wish I had an amazing sister like you. You're very lucky!

So sorry you've been through all you have. I've cycled with the ARCG too and know how much it takes out of you!

Best wishes to you both and I hope this way gets you there. I am sure it will.          

Marie x


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## Diane72 (Oct 29, 2007)

Thanks Marie


Dx


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## nic100 (Oct 29, 2009)

HI diane   

I have messaged you some answers, feel free to point out where I have missed anything as I know I can ramble lol

love nic xx


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## apricot (Apr 21, 2008)

Hi there

We used Soveriegn Finance for life insurance for our surrogacy and they were great - they do it a lot and we have used them again for the second try.

Wills wise - the solicitor will almost definitely want you to use seperate solicitors as there is a potential conflict of interest if they write wills for you both - particularly as you are sisters. Our surro didnt bother with a will, but we did ours as soon as we were pregnant. You will need to state who will look after your baby if you were both to die - of course this may be your sister so another conflict, but if it were someone else you will need to talk about who will challenge your sister if she tried to keep the baby. As you can see there are some very tricky questions and although most of them are incredibly unlikely, your solicitor is there to protect your interest and the babys so it is very important that you dont take your sister - sorry if Im being patronising! 

Good luck though - its ousnds as if your sis is a great sis xxxxx


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## Diane72 (Oct 29, 2007)

Thanks apricot!


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## LouGhevaert (May 18, 2009)

Hi

Specialist Wills are important in surrogacy situations for a number of reasons.

Firstly, as intended parents you will not automatically have a legal connection with your child at birth (as your sister and if she's married her husband will initially be the legal parents).  You therefore need a specialist Will to cure this lack of initial legal connection pending the grant of a parental order (so that your baby can inherit from you if you were to die unexpectedly).  You should also appoint trustees in your Will to manage your estate for your child's benefit until they are old enough to manage the resources sensibly.  You should also appoint legal guardians in your Will to care for your child (this is a bit complicated as this appointment will not kick in until you obtain your parental order but it is certainly better than not to include it from an evidential point of view). 

Your sister (and if married her husband) should also put specialist Wills in place appointing you as legal guardians for your child (to protect you pending the grant of a parental order) and also to exclude your child from inheriting a slice of their estate to the detriment of their own children.

Specialist Wills should be drawn up by separate solicitors to avoid any potential for a conflict of interest.  Specialist expertise in this regard is important.

Hope this helps and best of luck.

LouGhevaert


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