Six-Week Abortion Ban Undergoes Georgia Supreme Court Scrutiny

The fate of Georgia’s “heartbeat” abortion ban hinges on whether the state’s top court says the Roe v. Wade precedent guaranteeing the federal right to an abortion was ever valid.

Georgia’s constitution says that “acts in violation of this Constitution or the Constitution of the United States are void.” On its face, the provision applies to the ban, adopted by state lawmakers in 2019, which likely would have been struck down under Roe, which was in effect at the time.

But that was overruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in 2022, Georgia Solicitor General Stephen Petrany told ...