Top Court Sends Texas Abortion Case to Court That Backed Ban (1)

The U.S. Supreme Court formally returned a case over Texas’ six-week abortion ban to a federal appeals court, rejecting a request by clinics and doctors to send the matter directly to a trial judge who once blocked the law.

The order Thursday came six days after a divided Supreme Court left the law in force and let abortion providers press only a narrow part of their challenge. The new order was signed by Justice Neil Gorsuch, who wrote the majority opinion in the case.

The justices normally wait 25 days to issue a formal judgment, and the decision to ...