Baby M

Baby M (born March 27, 1986) was the pseudonym used in the case In re Baby M, 537 A.2d 1227, 109 N.J. 396 (N.J. 1988) for the infant whose legal parentage was in question.

In re Baby M was a custody case that became the first American court ruling on the validity of surrogacy. William and Elizabeth Stern entered into a surrogacy agreement with Mary Beth Whitehead, whom they found through a newspaper ad. According to the agreement, Mary Beth Whitehead would be inseminated with William Stern's sperm (making her a traditional, as opposed to gestational, surrogate), bring the pregnancy to term, and relinquish her parental rights in favor of William's wife, Elizabeth. After the birth, however, Mary Beth decided to keep the child. William and Elizabeth Stern then sued to be recognized as the child's legal parents.

The New Jersey court ruled that the surrogacy contract was invalid according to public policy, recognized Mary Beth Whitehead as the child's legal mother, and ordered the Family Court to determine whether Whitehead, as mother, or Stern, as father, should have legal custody of the infant, using the conventional 'best interests of the child' analysis. Stern was awarded custody, with Whitehead having visitation rights.

Baby M (singer)

Baby M (born April 27, ??) is a Japanese pop singer and songwriter. She is currently under Avex Records Japan.

Profile

Born in Japan to British/South African and Japanese parents, M spent her early childhood in Nagasaki. At the age of 14 she moved to Philippines with her mother's charitable work.

Her mother Monica had a charitable foundation, Kapatiran Foundation, based in Manila to establish feeding centers and education programs for children in some of the poorest areas of the city. It was during visits to these centers with her mother and sister that Baby M felt she wanted to help in her own way. She decided her passion for singing was the best way she could help and started singing in the slums. This is where she was discovered by a Japanese producer. In 2000 she was dubbed "the bridge between Japan and the Philippines." She also, through her mother, supported children with HIV in South Africa.

In 2000 Baby M released the independently produced It's Alright single to support the children in Muntinlupa City, a particularly deprived suburb of Metro Manila, Philippines.