Building Families LLC is a small law practice based in Columbia, South Carolina, with a presence in Greenville. Rather than a conventional matching agency, it is structured as a boutique adoption and assisted reproductive technology firm that also provides agency-style support, so the surrogacy work it describes centers on the legal side of a journey: drafting, reviewing and negotiating gestational carrier agreements, and obtaining pre-birth orders and final parentage orders that establish intended parents' legal relationship to their child.
The firm was founded in 2014 by attorney Allison "Allie" McNair, who holds a bachelor's degree from Furman University, a master's from Duke and a law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law. She owns the practice and handles its legal work. The team is small: Samuel "Cole" McNair serves as practice manager and Susan McNair works part time as a legal assistant.
Alongside surrogacy matters, the practice handles adoption work, including second-parent adoptions, which often sit close to the parentage questions that arise in a surrogacy journey. Allison McNair was selected to Super Lawyers' "Rising Stars" list for 2020 and 2021, according to her Super Lawyers profile.
Building Families holds an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau and is not BBB accredited. Further details on the practice appear below.
AI summary of 8 reviews · can make mistakes
Reviewers are consistently positive, describing Building Families as a family law team that handles the legal side of surrogacy and adoption, including out-of-state matters. Many mention quick, kind responses to questions and clear explanations of what was needed and when. Several say the team made a confusing legal process feel organized, smooth and low-stress.
8 reviews match these filters.
We had the privilege of working with Building Families through two surrogacy journeys. From start to finish, they made each step of the legal process organized and stress free. Cole and Allison were always responsive, professional, and supportive. They took the time to answer our questions, kept us informed throughout the process, and gave us confidence that everything was being handled correctly. If you're looking for an experienced and compassionate family law team, we wholeheartedly recommend Building Families. Thank you again for everything you've done for our family!
View on Google (opens in a new tab)Our family had the best experience with Building Families. Alli and Cole were very responsive, kind, efficient, and caring! We are so grateful for all of their hard work to help make our dreams come true! They were very knowledgeable on surrogacy law for our state! Highly recommend!
View on Google (opens in a new tab)Allie was such a huge help to us. She went above and beyond to get our paperwork pushed through. She was quick answering emails and very kind. This legal team is great and I would definitely recommend them! Five stars 🌟
View on Google (opens in a new tab)Allie McNair was a pleasure to work with throughout our adoption process. She was prompt and professional in all of her communications and responding to our questions. Her knowledge and expertise were appreciated and we would highly recommend her for adoption legal services.
View on Google (opens in a new tab)Google reviews are shown as written and link to the original. Reviewer type is inferred from what each reviewer wrote.
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Requirements change — confirm with the agency before applying.
See which agencies fit youBuilding Families accepts gestational surrogates between 21 and 41 years old.
Building Families requires surrogates to have a BMI of 30 or lower.
Yes. Building Families requires surrogates to have had at least 1 prior pregnancy.
No. Building Families requires surrogates to be non-smokers.
Building Families's citizenship or residency requirement for surrogates: Southern California residents only.
Yes. Building Families does not accept surrogates who live in: all states except California.
