What Will Happen Once the Georgia Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments on the 'Heartbeat Bill'?

(AP Photo/Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jason Getz)

In 2019, the Georgia General Assembly passed a bill that made abortion unlawful once a baby’s heartbeat is detectable, and Gov. Brian Kemp (R-Ga.) quickly signed it into law. The bill’s sponsors dubbed it the Living Infants Fairness and Equality (LIFE) Act, but most people know it as the fetal heartbeat law.

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“Georgia values life,” Kemp said at the time. “We stand up for the innocent and speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. The legislature’s bold action reaffirms our priorities and who we are as a state.”

The bill does so much more than ban abortion; it allows pregnant women to seek child support for their unborn babies and allows for tax exemptions before a baby enters the world. But all we hear about is the provision banning abortion because that’s what the left and its willing accomplices in the media have their sights on.

The state geared itself up for legal challenges from the start. The ACLU threatened legal action within days of the bill’s passage, and an abortion provider called SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective (it’s as if somebody tried to squeeze as much left-wingery into a group name as possible) eventually sued on behalf of other individuals and organizations.

Following last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which returned the question of abortion to the states, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals allowed the LIFE Act to proceed.

“We are overjoyed that the court has paved the way for the implementation of Georgia’s LIFE Act, and as mothers navigate pregnancy, birth, parenthood, or alternative options to parenthood — like adoption — Georgia’s public, private, and non-profit sectors stand ready to provide the resources they need to be safe, healthy, and informed,” Kemp said in a statement following that ruling.

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Related: Federal Court Allows Georgia’s Heartbeat Bill to Proceed

“Today, Brian Kemp achieved his goal: to endanger women, strip away our right to choose, and deny our ability to make medical decisions,” Stacey Abrams tweeted. “While it has taken over three years to take effect, the impact is clear: women are now second-class citizens in Kemp’s Georgia.”

On Tuesday, the LIFE Act is getting its hearing before the Georgia Supreme Court.

Despite its politically charged headline of “Fate of abortion rights in Georgia comes down to this major court case,” Axios gave a succinct explanation of what’s happening.

After appeals, the fate of the ban now rests with the state’s highest court, which temporarily reinstated it last fall pending the case.

  • A lower court judge struck down the law as unconstitutional in November.
  • It first went into effect last summer when a federal appeals court lifted an injunction on the law after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
  • Abortion rights advocates then filed suit in state court.

The court will hear oral arguments late Tuesday morning or early Tuesday afternoon, but it could be as long as six months before it issues a ruling.

The Georgia Life Alliance (GLA), which does a tremendous job of explaining on its website how the heartbeat bill is more than just an abortion ban, issued a statement asking people to pray for the oral arguments.

“Even though the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Georgia’s Heartbeat Bill, the abortion industry isn’t going down without a fight,” the statement begins, continuing:

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It is imperative that pro-life Georgians stay engaged on this issue and be diligently in prayer as the next front in the war on life continues to wage. Please join us in praying ahead of and during the hearing.

🙏 Pray for the Justices to hear the arguments with discernment

🙏 Pray for the pro-life attorneys to articulate our law with clarity and wisdom

🙏 Pray for the pro-abortion attorneys with compassion that God will change their hearts and minds

Georgians are already seeing the positive effects of the Heartbeat Bill. From babies being saved as abortion clinics shut down to pregnant women being eligible for child support and tax exemptions – the Heartbeat Bill is good for Georgia!

Thank you for continuing to pray with us.

“While I always hesitate to declare a victory before it’s been delivered, I feel confident that the State will accurately and effectively present the law and that the Justices will ultimately uphold the LIFE Act,” Elizabeth Edmonds, Leadership Director of Georgia Life Alliance, told PJ Media.

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