Planned Parenthood v. Casey

A 1992 U.S. Supreme Court decision that reaffirmed Roe v. Wade’s central protection of abortion rights while allowing regulations that did not impose an undue burden.

Undue burden standard: A legal test that invalidates abortion regulations whose purpose or effect is to place a substantial obstacle in the path of obtaining an abortion. Casey adopted this test to judge whether abortion regulations were constitutional.
Roe v. Wade: The 1973 Supreme Court decision that recognized a constitutional right to abortion under the framework it established. Casey reaffirmed Roe’s central protection while replacing its trimester framework.
Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania: A regional affiliate of Planned Parenthood that provides reproductive health services and was a party to Casey. It challenged Pennsylvania’s abortion restrictions in the litigation.
Trimester framework: Roe v. Wade’s model dividing pregnancy into three stages and varying the state’s regulatory authority across them. Casey abandoned this framework in favor of viability and undue-burden analysis.
Abortion counseling: Information and discussion provided to someone considering abortion, often subject to legal requirements. Casey upheld mandated counseling but barred requirements designed to mislead or obstruct.
Stare decisis: The legal principle that courts generally follow their precedents when deciding later cases. Casey relied on precedent to reaffirm Roe despite calling its reasoning flawed.
Pennsylvania Abortion Control Act: A 1989 Pennsylvania law imposing several requirements on people seeking abortions and on abortion providers. Its provisions created the restrictions the Court evaluated in Casey.
Viability: The point in pregnancy when a fetus can survive outside the pregnant person’s body, with or without medical assistance. Casey retained viability as the point after which abortion prohibitions could generally be imposed.
Informed consent: A process in which a person receives relevant information and voluntarily agrees to a medical procedure. The Court allowed Pennsylvania’s informed-consent rules, subject to the undue-burden test.
Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt: A 2016 Supreme Court decision striking down Texas abortion regulations that imposed substantial obstacles without sufficient medical benefits. The Court applied Casey’s undue-burden framework to invalidate clinic regulations.

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