Reproductive Rights
In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, ruling that the U.S. Constitution does not protect a fundamental right to abortion. Following this decision, many state trigger laws banning or restricting abortion went into effect, and several states have passed new abortion bans or restrictions.
Litigants are challenging many of these measures in state courts, pointing to rights to privacy, liberty, gender equality, equal protection, due process, and religious freedom in their state constitutions and other state laws. There are also active state constitutional amendment campaigns in several states. This litigation extends beyond abortion to fertility treatments, contraception, and other issues.
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Ballot Initiatives that Protect Abortion Rights Depend on Fair State Courts
From interpreting language to determining legality, state courts play a large role in efforts to protect abortion through ballot initiatives.
Center For Reproductive Rights Litigation Director Discusses the High Stakes of Abortion Litigation
State Court Report spoke with counsel for the plaintiffs challenging Texas’s strict abortion ban — which the state supreme court just ruled was constitutional.
Texas Supreme Court to Determine Scope of ‘Medical Emergency’ Exceptions to Abortion Bans
The plaintiffs include 20 women who were denied abortion care and two doctors who say Texas’s abortion bans prevent them from meeting their ethical obligations.
Texas Supreme Court Rejects Call to Clarify Exception to Abortion Ban
Plaintiffs who suffered severe physical and emotional harm after being denied abortions claimed the medical exceptions to the ban are unclear and unconstitutional.
Abortion and Trans Rights Advocates Turn to Unlikely Tool in State Constitutions
Lawsuits seeking to expand access to abortion and gender-affirming care rely on GOP-backed “health care freedom" provisions passed to limit the Affordable Care Act.
Scholarship Roundup: End of Semester Edition
Recent articles address states taking policy questions away from courts, standing in election cases, and state shadow dockets.
State Courts Diverge In Latest Wave of Abortion Litigation
Decisions in Arizona, Florida, Nevada, and Pennsylvania highlight stark contrasts in how courts approach reproductive rights.
Arizona Highlights Risk of 'Zombie' Laws
The U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling has breathed new life into long-unenforced abortion laws.