Building Families Through Surrogacy Since 1993
Helping clients in Ohio and Illinois, throughout the U.S. and around the world.
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Testimonials

Thank you very much. We are so incredibly happy & blessed to finally have our girls! You played such a large part in making the surrogacy process go perfectly for us & it is much appreciated, beyond words can say. You are an extraordinary attorney & wonderful person. Thank you again! — B. P.


Thank you for making our surrogacy process easier! Everything worked out great and the work you provided was flawless! The babies are doing very well. We will recommend you to all we meet! — B&B


Ellen was our “event planner”. She saw to every detail of our surrogacy. She drafted a contract based on the terms we had all agreed on. The contract was clear and concise. She helped us decide which state law, ours or that of our surrogate’s, would best help us achieve our goals. She also helped identify local counsel who could represent us in securing our birth order so that our names could be placed on our child’s birth certificate. Having Ellen there, speaking the right words to other lawyers and the Courts made things much more comfortable for us. Our twins were born February 1998 and we now have the family we always wanted. — E.G.


We worked with Rachel recently, who was instrumental in helping us obtain a pre-birth order for our son’s birth (in Ohio) that would see us both named as parents of the child from birth. Despite us living in New Zealand and only having a limited amount of time in the USA, with Rachel’s expertise, the process to us appeared seamless. There were no complications in obtaining our sons birth certificate just a few days after his birth and with that we were then able to obtain a passport and swiftly return home with our son. Thank you Rachel! — P.S., Intended Parent


Ellen Essig was great to work with! She is a recognized expert in the field of surrogacy law and yet was careful to make sure we understood everything she was doing. She returned our phone calls promptly and did what she said she was going to do when she said she was going to do it. I would definitely use her services again and I recommend them to anyone looking for support in this process. — M.R.


As a gay man, I wasn’t sure how to go about becoming a father. I was also uncertain about the rights of my partner who joined me in this project. We were anxious to become a family and welcome a child together. Once we had identified a surrogate, Ellen drafted a contract protecting our rights in the state in which our child would be born. I was able to be placed on the birth certificate right away. We then went home and did a second parent adoption. We are ready to welcome a second child into our family in the near future. — F.R.


Ellen:
I just wanted to send you a special “Thank You”. I received our son’s Social Security Card Saturday and then I received his Birth Certificate yesterday. Seeing that just made everything feel “complete”. With you, everything went very smoothly and for that I am very grateful…so again, thank you very much from the bottom of my heart! — Tammy


When I agreed to be a gestational surrogate for my Intended Parents I met online, I didn’t know where to turn first. Neither did they. Ellen helped us navigate the process by drafting a contract we could all understand. She helped me with several referrals to an attorney to review the contract with me since she represented the Intended Parents who lived in Ohio. She worked with my attorney to be sure that the birth order was handled in a professional way. Ellen was able to uncomplicate the process which went off without any surprises. The birth certificate was created just as we had planned. My surro-son is now three years old and I will be working with the same Intended Parents again soon. Ellen will be representing them a second time. — R.R.


In working with an agency out of the state, I was matched with Intended Parents in Massachusetts. I wanted to be sure that my name wasn’t on the birth certificate and neither was my husband’s. Ellen took care of all of the legal work to be sure I was protected. The Intended Parents and I went to Court (I’m told many Court’s don’t require a hearing but the Court in my county did) and the Judge issued an order that our names not appear on the birth certificate. The Intended Parents took their child home from the hospital, stopping briefly at the office of Vital Statistics to pick up their child’s birth certificate. They were thrilled! — L.M.


I cannot express how happy I have been working with Rachel throughout our entire contracting phase with our gestational surrogate. She has been so responsive and made both my husband and I feel like we were her only/most important client. Her response time and turnaround time of all documents and emails was so impressive. Rachel spent as much time as we needed to understand every single aspect of our contract and never once made us feel funny for asking even the simplest question. She always had our best interests at heart and gave us wonderful advice. She made us feel at ease, almost like we had known her for years- and we were able to entrust her immediately. She is so extremely knowledgeable about surrogacy and its laws. Rachel made this process so simple and I would recommend her to anyone. – E.A., Intended Parent