Supreme Court rejects Montana's push to enforce parental consent for minors' abortions

In a significant legal development, the Supreme Court of the United States opted not to review a Montana law requiring parental consent for minors seeking abortions. This decision came on Thursday, July 3, 2025, nearly twelve years after the Montana legislature initially approved the Parental Consent for Abortion Act in 2013. The law mandated that physicians obtain notarized written consent from a parent or guardian before performing an abortion for anyone under the age of 18. However, the law faced legal challenges early on when Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit arguing that it violated the Montana Constitution, which includes broader protections for abortion compared to federal statutes. The case regarding the parental consent law lingered for several years until the Montana Supreme Court struck it down, validating the arguments against the law. The state court found that the consent requirement infringed on a minor's right to privacy as guaranteed by the Montana Constitution, emphasizing that minors possess fundamental rights akin to those of adults. The legal justification for this outcome was that the state failed to demonstrate compelling interests that could justify such a stringent requirement, thereby invalidating the parental consent law since it was not aligned with the state’s compelling governmental interests regarding personal privacy. After the Montana Supreme Court upheld the decision, state officials requested the U.S. Supreme Court to reassess the state court's ruling, contending that it undermines parental rights under the federal Constitution. The officials asserted that the laws surrounding parental authority in medical decisions, including abortion, should not be questioned unless there's evidence of parental unfitness. Yet, Planned Parenthood maintained that the case pertained primarily to state constitutional law, arguing that the parental right could not overshadow the privacy rights of minors. In their recent ruling, along with the refusal to hear the case, Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas indicated that issues surrounding minors' rights and parental authority might be addressed in future cases. They highlighted that the specific context of this case made it a poor vehicle for analyzing the broader legal questions regarding parents' constitutional rights. The denial of the appeal leaves the Montana Supreme Court's ruling intact, providing a precedent that balances minors' privacy rights with parental involvement, while establishing a clear distinction of legal rights within the context of abortion law in Montana.