Surrogacy & Donor Seminar- Wellington

Convenor of New Zealand Egg Donor forum and experienced donor

Cindy Wasser practiced as a Canadian Criminal Defence lawyer from 1987 until 2008. In that year, she  became a mum to the first of two daughters through an egg donor and gestational surrogacy. This journey led her to her legal specialisation in Fertility Law. Cindy provides legal advice and services to intended parents, Canadian carriers and donors. Cindy has also provided legal advice to fertility medical practitioners and fertility consultant agencies. She has lectured in the area of fertility law at medico-legal conferences and hospitals.

Leigh enjoys helping people through what can sometimes be a challenging time in their journey to become parents.  She works hard to ensure you are kept informed at every step of the way. Leigh is an obstetrician and gynaecologist who has completed further subspecialty training in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, the highest qualification for a fertility specialist.  As part of this training she completed a fellowship at the Royal Women’s Hospital in Melbourne alongside some of the pioneers of IVF. Leigh has an interest in fertility preservation including egg freezing and adolescent gynaecology.  She sees both fertility and gynaecology patients at the Wellington Clinic and she regularly travels to Palmerston North to consult.   She is also a Senior Lecturer at the University of Otago and training supervisor for trainee future obstetricians and gynaecologists at Wellington Hospital.  Leigh enjoys living in Wellington with her family and the ease of spending time outdoors.  She also enjoys travelling and discovering new places and cultures.

After graduating high school in Switzerland, Lori volunteered in Mexico and South America for the International Health Agency. Over 25 years ago, Dr Arnold performed her first surrogacy case for an Italian couple, and since then, surrogacy has grown both nationally and internationally, as has her interest in third-party reproduction. In the early days, Dr Arnold needed to recruit, screen and follow-up with surrogates and egg donors since there were not many agencies who performed these services.  CACRM now recruit, screen, and perform the medical evaluations of surrogates and donors. Lauri’s team assist  Intended parents throughout the entire surrogacy journey until after delivery of their baby. CACRM feels everybody should have an opportunity to have a family, and we do not discriminate regarding age, sex, race, or gender

Thea Charkviani M.D. is a leading obstetrician gynecologist, reproductive endocrinologist at ReproART Georgian-American Center for Reproductive Medicine with over 25 years of experience, a highly acclaimed and demanded doctor both in Georgia and now abroad. She studied at the Tbilisi State Medical University, did an internship at the State Clinical Institute, and graduated from the Tbilisi State Medical Academy with qualifications in reproductive healthcare. Dr. Charkviani has helped thousands of infertile couples in making their dream come true and becoming parents.  Her extensive knowledge and practical experience ensures that couples receive up-to-date treatment using the latest assisted reproductive technologies.  She is also engaged in scientific publications, and her works in cooperation with the ReproART team were presented at the ESHRE (European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology) and ASRM (American Society for Reproductive Medicine). Free consultations are available with advance booking at: [email protected];

Emma is a two times gestational surrogate for gay friends in Auckland, with the IVF procedure being done both times in San Diego. She carried their first child (a boy) for them in 2018, born in October when Emma was 30 and their second child (a girl) was born in December 2019. Emma lives in Whanganui with her husband Brian and their 3 children.

Fiona is a registered social worker and has worked in the United Kingdom, Guernsey and New Zealand.  Her field of expertise is adoption work and she has over 20 years of knowledge working in this field as a social worker, supervisor and now as a senior advisor in the Intercountry Adoption Team, Oranga Tamariki – Ministry for Children.   For the past four years, Fiona has been the Ministry’s co-ordinator for international surrogacy and is the initial contact person for intending parents.  Throughout her career, Fiona has witnessed the lifelong importance of a person knowing their story and where they come from. (their whakapapa).

Leia is a mother to five, a two-time gestational surrogate, and a six-time egg donor. She began Canadian Fertility Consulting and Egg Helpers in 2007 after her second surrogacy, with the intention of creating a more rewarding experience for surrogates, egg donors and intended parents. With a background in business development and management, Leia turned her professional passion for alternative family building into a full-time business. Leia believes that surrogacy and egg donation is more than a medical transaction – bringing someone’s child into the world through surrogacy and egg donation is a milestone that deserves to be honoured and celebrated.

Natia has eight years of working experience with number of intended parents who have successfully completed surrogacy and egg donation programs in Georgia. Her activities include full program management and coordination, including donor and surrogate management for the successful completion of a defined program. Over her years of journey in the field, she has successfully implemented more than 2000 egg donation and surrogacy programs. 95% of the clients involved in the programs are international patients from different countries, most of the couples participating in the programs are from Israel, China, USA, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Canada, Australia, Greece, Spain, India and other countries. Many years of work experience helps her to determine the couple’s priorities, identify their needs and help them achieve the desired result. Free consultations are available at: [email protected]

Stewart is a Barrister and Solicitor at D&S Law, Auckland specialising in the law relating to assisted reproductive technology, domestic and international surrogacy, and adoption, as well as immigration and refugees. In addition, Stewart is a Board member of Fertility New Zealand.

Stewart together with his same-sex partner are the parents to children born as a result of domestic altruistic surrogacy. Stewart is a keen advocate for LGBTIQ rights and for access generally to assisted reproductive technology. In that regard, Stewart obtained a ground-breaking judgment in the New Zealand courts when he successfully argued the case for same-sex de facto couples to be able to be granted joint adoption orders. Earlier this year, Stewart represented a female same-sex couple in mediation with the Department of Internal Affairs, where he was successful in having the Department agree to change its procedures, and allow two women to be named on a child’s birth certificate as “mother” and “mother”, when the child was born as a result of assisted reproductive technology.

Grant and Christian became dads in 2020 when they welcomed their beautiful son Logan through surrogacy in the USA. They started their journal in 2017 and after two failed pregnancies with their first surrogate, they decided to try a final time with a new surrogate. Apart from the emotional rollercoaster they had to experience, they also faced the legal and logistical challenges because of COVID-19. Grant and Christian say the best thing about being dads is the fulfllment and happiness they experience every day!