Abortion rights: the fall of Roe

The United States Supreme Court has overturned the constitutional right to abortion. Ruling in the case Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the Court went beyond Mississippi’s request to allow it to ban abortion after 15 weeks’ pregnancy and fully overturned the two previous Supreme Court rulings, Roe and Casey, that had for 49 years made it unconstitutional to outlaw abortions pre-viability – that is, before a foetus could survive outside the womb, at around 24 weeks. Now, states will be able to restrict and ban abortion at any point in pregnancy.

When the majority opinion was leaked to the press in May, Global Insight spoke to four experts about the impact of the decision, human rights law on abortion, the journey to this moment and wider repercussions.