Eleanor Finch
Roe v. Wade is a landmark case in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that restrictive state regulation of abortion is unconstitutional, violating a person's right to privacy. The decision, made in 1973, established a framework for legal abortions across the United States, with the Court recognizing that the right to decide whether to continue a pregnancy is protected by the liberty clause in the Fourteenth Amendment. While Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, it remains a highly influential case, with supporters arguing that it accurately founded abortion rights in the Fourteenth Amendment.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year of Decision | 1973 |
| Decision | 7-2 |
| Decision Date | January 22, 1973 |
| Decision Overturned | Yes, in 2022 |
| Decision Overturned Date | May 2022 |
| Case Brought By | Jane Roe, an unmarried pregnant woman |
| Case Filed Against | Henry Wade, the district attorney of Dallas County, Texas |
| Case Filed Against Laws | Texas abortion laws |
| Case Filed For | Challenging the constitutionality of Texas criminal abortion laws |
| Case Filed For Laws | Roe contended that abortion rights are supported by the Fourteenth Amendment |
| Case Supporters | Those who believe the power balance between men and women is unequal |
| Case Opponents | Those who believe the decision lacks a valid constitutional foundation |
| Case Similarities | Younger v. Harris, Doe v. Bolton, United States v. Vuitch, Planned Parenthood v. Casey |
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What You'll Learn
Roe v. Wade and the right to privacy
In Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 ruling recognized that the decision to continue or end a pregnancy belongs to the individual, not the government. The Court held that the guarantee of "liberty" in the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which protects individual privacy, includes the right to abortion before fetal viability.
The Roe v. Wade decision was based on the Supreme Court's interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause, which states that no state shall "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law." While the word "privacy" does not appear in the Fourteenth Amendment or anywhere else in the Constitution, the Court found that it implies a right to privacy. This interpretation was influenced by the Court's earlier decision in Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), which established a constitutional right to privacy in the context of using contraception without government interference.
The Roe v. Wade decision placed reproductive decision-making alongside other fundamental rights, such as freedom of speech and religion, by conferring the highest degree of constitutional protection, known as "strict scrutiny." The Supreme Court required the state to justify any interference with the right to access abortion by demonstrating a "compelling interest."
The ruling in Roe v. Wade effectively stopped the enforcement of many state laws that banned abortion before 24 weeks. However, the government retained the power to regulate or restrict abortion access depending on the stage of pregnancy. For nearly five decades, states, healthcare providers, and citizens fought over the limits the government could place on abortion access, particularly during the second and third trimesters.
In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, abandoning its duty to protect the fundamental right to abortion. This decision has sparked concerns about the future of privacy rights in the United States and the potential impact on other privacy-related cases that relied on the precedent set by Roe v. Wade.
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The Fourteenth Amendment
In Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court interpreted the Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of liberty as protecting individual privacy, encompassing a woman's decision to terminate her pregnancy. Justice Harry Blackmun, writing for the majority, asserted that the right to privacy protected under the Fourteenth Amendment implicitly includes the right to abortion. This decision recognised that the choice to continue or end a pregnancy belongs to the individual rather than the government, aligning with earlier Supreme Court rulings upholding privacy in intimate decisions.
However, critics of Roe v. Wade argue that the decision lacks a valid constitutional foundation. They contend that the Constitution is silent on the issue of abortion and that solutions should be found through state legislatures rather than an all-encompassing Supreme Court ruling. In 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, marking the first time the Court has revoked a fundamental right. This reversal has led to a wave of state-level abortion bans, underscoring the ongoing debate surrounding the interpretation and application of the Fourteenth Amendment in the context of abortion rights.
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The impact of Roe v. Wade on abortion laws
Roe v. Wade was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973, which ruled that the Constitution of the United States protected the right to have an abortion before the point of fetal viability. The case was brought by Norma McCorvey, under the legal pseudonym "Jane Roe", who, in 1969, became pregnant with her third child. McCorvey wanted an abortion but lived in Texas, where abortion was only legal when necessary to save the mother's life.
The Roe v. Wade decision struck down many state abortion laws, and it sparked an ongoing abortion debate in the United States about whether, or to what extent, abortion should be legal, who should decide the legality of abortion, and what the role of moral and religious views in the political sphere should be. The decision also had a significant impact on abortion laws and access in the United States.
Firstly, the decision placed reproductive decision-making alongside other fundamental rights, such as freedom of speech and freedom of religion, by conferring on it the highest degree of constitutional protection, known as "strict scrutiny". This meant that the Supreme Court required the state to justify any interference with the right to access abortion by showing that it had a ""compelling interest," and held that no interest was compelling enough to ban abortion before viability.
Secondly, the decision led to a 4.5% decline in births in states that had not previously legalized abortion. The legalization of abortion in the United States increased the labour supply of fertile-aged women in the workforce but decreased the labour supply of older women. This was due to the fact that they now had fewer opportunities to financially support grandchildren, and thus, older women whose labour was less necessary for the family's financial well-being either left or stayed out of the workforce.
Thirdly, the risk of death due to legal abortion fell considerably due to increased physician skills, improved medical technology, and earlier termination of pregnancy. Various studies have shown that overturning Roe would likely increase the number of pregnancy-related deaths, as individuals may resort to unsafe methods.
Finally, while Roe’s legal implications were enormous, even Roe could not make access a reality for everyone. Low-income people, people of colour, young people, and others continued to face obstacles to abortion care. Lawsuits against abortion restrictions multiplied, with some reaching the Supreme Court. A changing Court issued a series of decisions diluting Roe. After 1992, the Court evaluated abortion regulations under an “undue burden” standard that permits states to restrict abortion as long as burdens on access are not too severe. In practice, courts have upheld a range of restrictions that make abortion more difficult to access, especially for marginalized groups.
In 2022, the Court overturned Roe v. Wade and eliminated the federal constitutional right to abortion. This decision has had a significant impact on abortion access in the United States, with more than a dozen states banning abortion outright, forcing people to travel hundreds or thousands of miles to access abortion care or to carry pregnancies against their will.
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The Supreme Court's interpretation of the Constitution
Roe v. Wade is a 1973 lawsuit that led to the Supreme Court making a ruling on abortion rights. The case began in 1970 when "Jane Roe"—a fictional name used to protect the identity of the plaintiff, Norma McCorvey—instituted federal action against Henry Wade, the district attorney of Dallas County, Texas, where Roe resided.
In Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decided that the United States Constitution provides a fundamental "right to privacy" that protects a person's right to choose whether to continue a pregnancy. The Court held that a set of Texas statutes criminalizing abortion in most instances violated a constitutional right to privacy, which it found to be implicit in the liberty guarantee of the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The justices acknowledged that being forced to continue a pregnancy puts a lot at risk. The Court was skeptical of the state's argument that Constitutional protections begin at conception, noting that the Constitution does not provide a definition of a "person."
The Roe v. Wade decision also includes a discussion of the different views on when life begins. The Court found that it is not up to the states to decide when life begins and that privacy rights must be balanced with the state's interests. The Roe decision made state abortion bans unconstitutional and abortion care legal, more accessible, and safer throughout the country.
The Supreme Court required the state to justify any interference with the right to access abortion by showing that it had a "compelling interest." The Court concluded that no interest was compelling enough to ban abortion before viability. After viability, the state could ban abortion or take other steps to promote its interest in protecting the fetus. However, even after viability, abortion must be permitted to protect a patient's life and health.
In 2022, the Supreme Court reversed its Roe v. Wade decision, taking back a constitutional protection that stood for decades. The ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization marked the first time in history that the Supreme Court has taken away a fundamental right.
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The role of state legislatures in abortion regulation
The Roe v. Wade case of 1973 was a landmark decision by the US Supreme Court, which ruled that the Constitution protects a pregnant woman's liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. The ruling was based on the Ninth Amendment, through the Fourteenth Amendment. However, in June 2022, the Supreme Court overturned this decision, leaving abortion policies and reproductive rights in the hands of each state.
One way state legislatures regulate abortion is by restricting the types of clinicians who can provide abortion services. Some states have enacted physician-only laws, limiting abortion provision to physicians. In contrast, other states have expanded the types of clinicians who can lawfully provide abortions, including physician assistants, certified nurse midwives, and nurse practitioners.
State legislatures also have the power to regulate the scope of practice for healthcare practitioners, although this does not typically outline specific medical procedures. Additionally, states can require private health insurance plans regulated by the state to include abortion coverage, improving the affordability of abortion services. Conversely, some states have restricted abortion coverage in private and Marketplace plans.
State legislatures have also been involved in legal battles surrounding abortion. For example, in Arizona, there was confusion over whether a total abortion ban from 1864 or a 15-week ban trigger law from 2022 should be enforced. The state legislature ultimately repealed the 1864 law, leaving the 15-week ban in place. Similarly, Planned Parenthood of Utah is challenging a near-total trigger ban passed by the state legislature, arguing that it violates the state constitution, which grants a right to gender equality.
In conclusion, the role of state legislatures in abortion regulation has become crucial following the overturning of Roe v. Wade. State legislatures have the power to shape abortion access within their states, leading to a varied landscape of abortion laws across the nation. While some states have restricted abortion access, others have taken proactive measures to expand it, highlighting the ongoing debate surrounding abortion regulation in the United States.
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Frequently asked questions
Roe v. Wade is a 1973 lawsuit that led to the Supreme Court making a ruling on abortion rights.
The Supreme Court ruled that a set of Texas statutes criminalizing abortion in most instances violated a constitutional right to privacy.
Roe v. Wade established a framework for legal abortions across the United States. The ruling changed the way states can regulate abortion and characterized abortion as something covered under constitutional rights of privacy.
Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court in 2022.
The ruling was based on the Fourteenth Amendment, which states that no state can "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law". The Court held that the right to privacy is implicit in the liberty guarantee of the due process clause.
