After abortion, US Supreme Court may go after contraception, same-sex marriage, say experts

With speculations rife that the US Supreme Court may reverse the Roe vWade verdict after a draft of the order went viral, legal experts now opine that other laws related to marriage, sexuality and family life, including access to contraception, might see an overhaul.

According to the draft ruling, which was disclosed in a leak, the majority of the court seemed to be veering towards upholding a Mississippi law banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

The experts believe that if the court adopts the draft's legal reasoning when it issues its eventual ruling by the end of June, it could imperil the right to access contraception, Griswold v Connecticut.

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“If this [draft] opinion becomes the opinion of the court, Griswold is imperilled – no question,” Wendy Parmet, faculty co-director for the Center for Health Policy and Law at Northeastern University told The Guardian.

Justice Samuel Alito, in his draft decision, argues that Roe is a faulty law.

Roe is based on the 14th amendment, as are decisions like Obergefell v Hodges on same-sex marriage, Loving v Virginia on interracial marriage, and Lawrence v Texas on consensual sex, the UK-based newspaper reported.

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"Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences," Alito wrote in the draft, adding that Roe and a 1992 decision that reaffirmed it have only "deepened division" in society.

On Tuesday, the court acknowledged the authenticity of the leaked draft, but sought a preliminary probe into the leak.

Some commentators indicated that Alito, through his leaked draft, has provided a road map for future attempts to eliminate other guaranteed liberties.

"On interracial marriage, contraception and same-sex marriage, for one reason or another there is no likelihood the court is going to revisit those decisions," Northwestern University law professor John McGinnis told Reuters.

(With inputs from agencies)

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