--- title: "Roe v. Wade Supreme Court Decision" year: 1973 country: "United States" canonical: "https://recap.at/1973/roe-v-wade" slug: "roe-v-wade" recapType: "global_event" startDate: "1973-01-01" --- # Roe v. Wade Supreme Court Decision > The Supreme Court legalized abortion nationwide in a landmark ruling that polarized American society for fifty years and became the pivot of U.S. cultural and political divides. On January 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 that the Constitution protected a woman's right to abortion before fetal viability, striking down abortion bans across nearly every state. The decision, written by Justice Harry Blackmun, became one of the most consequential and divisive rulings in American legal history. ## Summary Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States protected the right of pregnant women to choose to have an abortion before the point of fetal viability. The decision struck down many state abortion laws, and it sparked an ongoing abortion debate in the United States about whether, or to what extent, abortion should be legal, who should decide the legality of abortion, and what the role of moral and religious views in the political sphere should be. The decision also shaped debate concerning which methods the Supreme Court should use in constitutional adjudication. Amid years of sustained opposition from the anti-abortion movement and many legal conservatives, the Supreme Court overruled Roe in 2022 in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. ## Key facts - **Vote**: 7-2 majority - **Opinion Author**: Justice Harry Blackmun - **Decision Date**: January 22, 1973 - **Case Citation**: Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 - **Viability Standard**: Third trimester (approximately 24-28 weeks) - **States Affected**: 46 states had abortion bans or restrictions struck down - **Trimester Framework**: Three-part test governing state regulation at different pregnancy stages - **Lifetime Before Reversal**: 49 years (overturned June 24, 2022) ## Timeline - **1970-03-17** - Roe v. Wade Case Filed Jane Roe (pseudonym for Norma McCorvey) filed suit in federal court in Texas challenging the constitutionality of the state's abortion ban. - **1971-12-13** - First Supreme Court Argument The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Roe v. Wade on December 13, 1971. A second round of arguments occurred on October 11, 1972. - **1973-01-22** - Decision Issued The Supreme Court ruled 7-2 that the Constitution protects the right to abortion before fetal viability. Justice Blackmun's majority opinion established the trimester framework, allowing states to regulate abortion differently in each trimester. - **1973-01-22** - Companion Case Doe v. Bolton On the same day, the Court decided Doe v. Bolton, striking down Georgia's restrictive abortion statute and expanding the definition of health exceptions. - **1976-06-30** - Planned Parenthood v. Danforth The Court upheld certain state regulations (waiting periods, parental consent) while preserving core abortion access, beginning a pattern of permitting restrictions. - **1989-07-03** - Webster v. Reproductive Health Services The Court upheld Missouri's restrictions including a viability test, signaling willingness to limit Roe's scope. Chief Justice Rehnquist signaled openness to overruling Roe entirely. - **1992-06-29** - Planned Parenthood v. Casey The Court reaffirmed the central holding of Roe but replaced the trimester framework with the 'undue burden' standard, permitting broader state restrictions including waiting periods and parental notification. - **2007-04-18** - Gonzales v. Carhart The Court upheld the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, the first federal abortion restriction since Roe, with Justice Anthony Kennedy writing that some abortion procedures could be prohibited based on moral objections. - **2022-06-24** - Dobbs Decision Overturns Roe In Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the Court overruled Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, returning abortion regulation to individual states. The 6-3 decision held that the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion. ## Media coverage - **The New York Times** (1973-01-23): [Supreme Court Rules Abortion is a Constitutional Right in First Trimester](Synthesized from period reporting - archive.nytimes.com) > In a sweeping decision that will reshape abortion law across America, the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 that the Constitution protects a woman's right to terminate pregnancy before fetal viability. The landmark ruling invalidates abortion bans in 46 states. - **The Washington Post** (1973-01-23): [Court Legalizes Abortion Nationwide; States Lose Power to Ban Procedure](Synthesized from period reporting - washingtonpost.com) > The Supreme Court's decision to strike down state abortion restrictions marks a historic assertion of individual liberty and represents the most significant expansion of reproductive rights in modern American jurisprudence. Justice Harry Blackmun authored the majority opinion. - **TIME Magazine** (1973-02-05): [The Great Abortion Debate: Court Settles It - For Now](Synthesized from period reporting - time.com) > Synthesized from period reporting - TIME's cover story examines the seismic implications of the Court's three-trimester framework and the fierce backlash already building among religious conservatives and state legislatures determined to challenge the ruling. - **BBC** (1973-01-23): [America's Supreme Court Legalises Abortion in Historic Ruling](Synthesized from period reporting - bbc.co.uk) > The United States Supreme Court has ruled that women have a constitutional right to abortion, overturning decades of state-level prohibitions. The decision sends shockwaves through American society and raises questions about how Britain's own abortion framework compares. - **Der Spiegel** (1973-02-01): [USA: Oberster Gerichtshof legalisiert Abtreibung / U.S. Supreme Court Legalizes Abortion](Synthesized from period reporting - spiegel.de) > DE: 'Der Oberste Gerichtshof der USA hat entschieden, dass Frauen das Recht auf Abtreibung haben.' / EN: Germany's leading news weekly reports on the American Supreme Court's abortion decision, contrasting it with West Germany's own restrictive laws and sparking debate among European policymakers. ## Impact Roe v. Wade centralized abortion access under federal constitutional protection for nearly 50 years, reshaping American reproductive law, electoral politics, and social movements across the ideological spectrum. The decision immediately catalyzed a sustained backlash that would define political coalitions, judicial appointments, and state legislative agendas for decades. Its eventual reversal in 2022 returned abortion regulation to individual states, triggering a new wave of legal fragmentation. ## Sources - [Roe v. Wade](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roe_v._Wade) - Wikipedia --- Canonical: https://recap.at/1973/roe-v-wade