The Australian Law Reform Commission has been tasked with conducting "a review of Australian surrogacy laws, policies and practices to identify legal and policy reforms".

Last month, Women's Forum Australia made a submission to the ALRC on its Review of Surrogacy Laws Issues Paper. The next round of submissions will be open when the ALRC publishes its Discussion Paper in November, with its final report and recommendations due to the Attorney-General by 29 July 2026.

You can download our submission on the Issues Paper here or read it below.

By Stephanie Bastiaan

Victorian Liberal MP Nicole Werner has announced she and her husband Fraser are expecting their first baby after a lengthy struggle with infertility following a Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) diagnosis.

By Dr Emma Wood

In the last month, Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS) released a research report, titled: “A Life Course Approach to Determining the Prevalence and Impact of Sexual Violence in Australia.” The report summarised findings from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health.

News that IVF doctors have enabled a seventy year old woman in India to give birth to a baby will undoubtedly provide countless women worldwide with false hope about their own chances of using reproductive technology to become pregnant and give birth. This comes amidst existing critique of the fertility industry regarding its lack of transparency about success rates of treatment.

Assisted reproductive technology (ART) has grown significantly since the birth of Louise Brown, the world’s first ‘test-tube baby’ in 1978, with more than 8 million babies estimated to have been born worldwide as a result of IVF and other advanced fertility treatments.

A young NSW mum made news recently after disclosing that she almost bled to death following the birth of her baby as part of an altruistic surrogacy arrangement.

Appearing before a parliamentary committee on the Repeal of Sex Work Offences Bill this week, Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier expressed her support for decriminalising prostitution in South Australia and criticised the current law for not providing adequate protections to those in the industry.

New research has found that most women undergoing IVF treatment in Australia are paying for costly add-on treatments despite “rather weak” evidence of their effectiveness and safety.