Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern believes a "bespoke solution" could be pursued for surrogate baby Paige's deceased mum to be recorded on her birth certificate.
Newshub National Correspondent Patrick Gower brought Paige's story to the nation, and some 51,000 people have signed a petition calling for change.
It's a unique situation. The 18-month-old's surrogate Renee is not recorded on her birth certificate, because by law her mum is Kat. But Kat tragically passed away four months before Paige was born, so she has no mum recorded on her birth record.
As Gower reported, surrogate births rely on an after-birth adoption happening. An 'intended mother' had never died ahead of birth before. They knew there would be problems with the birth certificate.
Under the 1955 law, an adoptive mother has to be alive. That's why Kat is 'not recorded' on Paige's birth certificate.
"Because it's never happened, no one knows what to do," says Renee. "My husband has literally written to everyone in Parliament and our local MP and everything, and no one has been willing to come forward and try and make it happen."
Speaking to More FM on Wednesday, the Prime Minister acknowledged the unique situation and promised to look into it.
"Our laws on surrogacy generally need to be updated; in fact, one of our MPs Tamati Coffey is doing some work to try and update our surrogacy laws," Ardern said.
"But this sounds like a situation - and we get these from time to time - that as you can hear, are very particular circumstances that won't necessarily hold generally for surrogacy.
"Often the issue is around how the ongoing caregivers are legally acknowledged. That tends to be the issue with surrogacy currently in our laws.
"This sounds like something that needs a bit of a bespoke solution for it.
"I've had situations before as an MP in adoption situations where there's been a pathway, albeit it quite a long one, to try and change birth certificates. It's not always a simple process but there are ways to do it."
Ardern said she'd need "a bit of advice from one of our justice teams".
"Just hearing the information you've got, I don't necessarily have everything I need to be able to give you advice, but there will be a way through, even if it's a bespoke solution.
"We design laws that for the majority of the time work but there will always be some circumstances that are often quite heartbreaking and personal where we have to find alternative ways through."
Ardern said after the call, she'd speak to a More FM producer to get more details.
"We can't deal with cases unless we get privacy sign-offs and things like that. But I can find a way to get those details from you."
The outgoing Children's Commissioner Andrew Becroft used his last day to bring attention to 18-month-old Paige's situation.
"I think it would draw tears from stone. It's sad beyond words," Judge Becroft told Gower.
"Legislation that is over 60 years old - it is palpably, demonstrably and unarguably unfit for purpose, out of date."
