Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)

1) Link to the Actual Opinion
Read the Supreme Court opinion (PDF)

2) Summary of the Opinion
Mississippi passed a law banning most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, directly challenging Roe v. Wade (1973) and Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992). The Supreme Court, in a 6–3 decision, upheld the law and explicitly overruled Roe and Casey, holding that the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion.

3) Why It Mattered
Dobbs ended nearly 50 years of federal constitutional protection for abortion rights and returned authority to regulate abortion to the states.

4) What It Provided or Took Away

• Took Away: Federal constitutional right to abortion established in Roe and reaffirmed in Casey.
• Provided: States full authority to regulate or ban abortion as they see fit.

5) Overreach or Proper Role?
Supporters saw it as correcting an overreach in Roe by returning the issue to democratic processes. Critics viewed it as stripping away a fundamental right and destabilizing constitutional precedent.

6) Plain-English Impact Today
Abortion laws now vary by state. Some states ban or heavily restrict abortion, while others protect access. The federal Constitution no longer guarantees abortion rights.

• Abortion
• Due Process
• 14th Amendment
• Privacy
• Reproductive Rights