How does a court resolve a parentage dispute if intended parents separate before the child is born?

If intended parents separate before the child is born, the surrogacy arrangement doesn't automatically fall apart, but it does complicate how parentage is resolved, since the automatic route generally assumes both intended parents remain committed to the arrangement they agreed to before conception. Where a dispute arises, a court asked to determine parentage — typically through an application for a declaration of parentage — will look at the written pre-conception agreement, the intentions each party had at the time it was signed, and their conduct since, rather than simply following whatever either separated parent wants at that point.

It is possible for one intended parent to end up not being recognized as a parent if the evidence shows they no longer intended to take on that role, but this isn't automatic either — the court's focus stays on the child's status and the parties' documented intentions, not on the fact of the separation itself. Anyone facing a separation mid-surrogacy should get legal advice immediately rather than assuming the original agreement no longer matters.