Surrogate Motherhood and the Morality of Care

The celebrated case of Baby M focused public attention on the practice of surrogate motherhood. This paper examines the judicial and legislative responses and the public policy implications of surrogate parenting contracts from the perspective of a morality of care. This perspective, which owes much to the pioneering work of Carol Gilligan, elevates the bond between mother and child over the rights conferred by contract. Working with this perspective, several arguments are advanced against the granting of specific performance of surrogate parenting contracts.