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FIRST ON FOX: Montana lawyer Gen. Austin Knudsen is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his appeal of a ruling by his state’s highest court that struck down a 2013 law requiring minors seeking abortions to obtain consent in writing from a parent or legal guardian.
The law also includes a judicial referral provision, which allows minors to seek court approval for an abortion without parental consent.
The Montana Supreme Court struck down the Parental Consent for Abortion Act in 2024, ruling that it violates a minor’s fundamental right to privacy under the state constitution by conditioning access to abortion on consent of the parents
The court recognized that parents have the right to direct the care and custody of their children, but determined that those rights do not override a minor child’s “fundamental” right to seek an abortion.
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Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen (Fox News)
Justice Laurie McKinnon, writing for the Montana Supreme Court, said that “a minor’s right to control her reproductive decisions is one of the most fundamental rights she has” and that the state failed to demonstrate a compelling need to the law to protect minors, according to Reuters. informed at the time.
Knudsen’s appeal asks al US Supreme Court to address whether parental rights include the ability to participate in decisions about a minor child’s medical care, including abortion.
The case highlights the ongoing debate over parental authority following the Women’s Health Organization’s Dobbs v. Jackson decision.
“SCOTUS should hear the case and reverse the radical Montana Supreme Court’s bad decision to allow minors to get abortions without parental consent,” Knudsen said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“A child’s right to privacy does not supersede a parent’s fundamental right to direct the care and education of their child. Until we get clarity from the Supreme Court, the health and safety of Montana’s youth. seeking abortions is at risk.”
Planned Parenthood Manhattan (Getty Images)
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The result could have broad implications for abortion access and parental consent laws across the country because several states have recently passed “shield laws,” protecting medical providers from legal consequences for performing abortion surgeries. gender transition and abortions in minors.
For Knudsen’s case to be heard in court, at least four judges must agree to review it.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Planned Parenthood Montana for comment.
