ATLANTA — A lawsuit contesting Georgia’s almost complete ban on abortion is being returned to a lower trial court. The purpose is to determine if the individuals challenging the law possess the legal standing necessary to file a lawsuit.
On Thursday, the Georgia Supreme Court made a 6-1 decision, instructing the trial court judge to reassess the issue of standing based on a prior ruling from January that altered state law regarding who is able to initiate a lawsuit.
Meanwhile, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney’s September ruling, which declared the abortion law unconstitutional, remains in suspension. In a separate case from January, the court determined that only individuals and organizations with direct claims to their rights can bring lawsuits in Georgia, reversing an earlier standard that permitted some third parties to file on behalf of others.
Andrea Young, the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia, which advocates for the plaintiffs, stated that the court’s ruling “has further delayed any possibility of justice for women and families in our state.”
Monica Simpson, the executive director of SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, the lead plaintiff in the case, argued that the ruling represents more than just a procedural setback and poses a risk to the well-being of Georgians.
“With each passing day the abortion ban remains in effect, it jeopardizes our families and communities and reinforces systemic inequality,” she said in a statement sent via email. “This delay is unjust, but we will not let any legal obstacles hinder our fight for the bodily autonomy we deserve.”
In September, McBurney ruled that the state’s law unconstitutionally restricts abortions after approximately six weeks of pregnancy, often occurring before women are even aware they are pregnant. He established that the privacy rights under Georgia’s constitution include the right to make one’s own healthcare choices.
The law in question, enacted by Republican Governor Brian Kemp in 2019, is one among several stringent abortion regulations that took effect across Republican-led states following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, dismantling the nationwide right to abortion. The law prohibits most abortions once a “detectable human heartbeat” is observed, which typically occurs around six weeks into pregnancy, when an embryo shows cardiac activity detectable through ultrasound.
A total of twelve U.S. states are currently enforcing full bans on abortion at all stages of pregnancy, while an additional four states restrict abortions around the six-week mark. Recently, voters in Missouri rescinded a near-total abortion ban, allowing procedures to resume last week.
In his ruling, McBurney articulated that “liberty in Georgia encompasses the notion that women have the authority over their own bodies, including the right to dictate what happens to them without interference from the state regarding personal healthcare decisions.”
He further noted that “intervention by society should only occur when a fetus reaches viability, a stage at which society can realistically undertake care and responsibility for that distinct life.”
Previously, Georgia law allowed abortions until viability, which is generally recognized as being between 22 to 24 weeks of pregnancy.
