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HomeFamily CodeDiv. 12Pt. 3Ch. 3§ 7620 Assisted Reproduction Parentage Jurisdiction

§ 7620 Assisted Reproduction Parentage Jurisdiction

Family Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 7620 Assisted Reproduction Parentage Jurisdiction

Key Takeaways

  • •If you use assisted reproduction (like IVF or a surrogate) in this state, the courts here can decide who the legal parents are.
  • •The court can step in if any part of the process (like signing the agreement, the medical procedure, or the birth) happens in this state.
  • •You can’t avoid the court’s rules by doing things in another state if any part happened here.
  • •The case about who the parents are will be heard in the county where the child lives, where the adoption is happening, or where the surrogate agreement says.

Example

A couple uses a surrogate in California to have a baby. They sign the agreement in California, the baby is born here, and they all live here.

If there’s ever a fight about who the legal parents are, the court in California will decide because everything happened here.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 7620 Assisted Reproduction Parentage Jurisdiction

(a) A person who has sexual intercourse or causes conception with the intent to become a legal parent by assisted reproduction in this state, or who enters into an assisted reproduction agreement for gestational carriers in this state, thereby submits to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state as to an action brought under this part with respect to a child who may have been conceived by that act of intercourse or assisted reproduction, or who may have been conceived as a result of that assisted reproduction agreement. (b) If a child is conceived pursuant to an assisted reproduction agreement for gestational carriers, as defined in Section 7960 and as described in Section 7962, the courts of this state shall have jurisdiction over a proceeding to determine parentage of the child if any of the following conditions is satisfied: (1) One or more of the parties to the assisted reproduction agreement for gestational carriers resides in this state, or resided in this state at the time the assisted reproduction agreement for gestational carriers was executed. (2) The medical procedures leading to conception, including in vitro fertilization or embryo transfer, or both, were carried out in this state. (3) The child is born in this state. (c) An action under this part shall be brought in one of the following: (1) The county in which the child resides or is found. (2) If the child is the subject of a pending or proposed adoption, any county in which a licensed California adoption agency to which the child has been relinquished or is proposed to be relinquished maintains an office. (3) If the child is the subject of a pending or proposed adoption, the county in which an office of the department or a public adoption agency investigating the petition is located. (4) If the parent is deceased, the county in which proceedings for probate of the estate of the parent of the child have been or could be commenced. (5) If the child was conceived pursuant to an assisted reproduction agreement for gestational carriers, any county described in subdivision (e) of Section 7962. (Amended by Stats. 2016, Ch. 385, Sec. 3. (AB 2349) Effective January 1, 2017.)

Last verified: January 21, 2026

Key Terms

agreementreproductionadoptionjurisdictionmedicallicensefineconception

Related Statutes

  • § 8545 Special Needs Adoption Eligibility
  • § 8801.3 Adoption Placement Requirements
  • § 8817 Adoption Medical Background Report
  • § 8702 Birth Parent Health Disclosure
  • § 8714 Adoption Request Filing Rules

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Family Code. Section 7620.
View Official Source