Reproductive Justice Litigation
The WLP has litigated some of the major reproductive rights cases of the past several decades, including:
- Ferguson v. City of Charleston (2001), a U.S. Supreme Court case declaring unconstitutional an interagency policy to test low-income pregnant women for drugs without informed consent and notify police of positive outcomes;
- Elizabeth Blackwell Health Center v. Knoll (1995), striking down Pennsylvania’s rape and incest reporting requirements, and second-physician certification requirements, for low-income women seeking Medicaid abortions;
- Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992), the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case reaffirming abortion rights and striking down Pennsylvania’s husband notification statute;
- Roe v. Operation Rescue (1989), a civil action winning injunctive relief against reproductive health clinic blockades by anti-abortion activists;
- ACOG v. Thornburgh (1986), challenging Pennsylvania’s Abortion Control Act of 1982 and in which the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutional principles of Roe v. Wade.
Additionally, the WLP has represented women who were denied abortion services while imprisoned, represented a woman whose boyfriend obtained a court order preventing her from obtaining abortion care, and assisted other women whose parents attempted to force them to have abortions.
|
