{"id":375372,"date":"2016-03-31T21:36:12","date_gmt":"2016-04-01T02:36:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/state\/north-carolina-law\/north-carolina-abortion-laws.html"},"modified":"2024-08-08T16:46:24","modified_gmt":"2024-08-08T21:46:24","slug":"north-carolina-abortion-laws","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/state\/north-carolina-law\/north-carolina-abortion-laws.html","title":{"rendered":"North Carolina Abortion Laws"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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North Carolina Abortion Laws<\/h1>\n
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\n By John Mascolo, Esq.<\/a> | Legally reviewed by John Mascolo, Esq.<\/a>\n | Last updated\n
\n \n <\/i>\n Legally Reviewed\n <\/summary>\n\n
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This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by FindLaw\u2019s team of legal writers and attorneys<\/a> and in accordance with our editorial standards<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n\n

\n \n <\/i>\n Fact-Checked\n <\/summary>\n\n
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The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our contributing authors<\/a>. We make every effort to keep our articles updated. For information regarding a specific legal issue affecting you, please contact an attorney in your area<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n<\/section>\n

Abortion is legal in North Carolina through the first 12 weeks of pregnancy without conditions. In cases where a pregnancy resulted from rape or incest, abortion<\/a> is legal through 20 weeks of pregnancy. In cases where the physician detects a life-limiting anomaly, abortion is legal through 24 weeks. After that, abortion is legal only in cases of a medical emergency.<\/p>\r\n

North Carolina Abortion Laws After <\/b>Dobbs<\/i><\/h2>\r\n

In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade<\/i><\/a> in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization<\/i><\/a>. In Dobbs<\/i>, the Supreme Court’s 6-3 majority ruled that Roe<\/i> was wrongly decided and that the federal constitutional right to privacy does not include a right to decide whether to have an abortion. The decision in Dobbs<\/i> upended decades of legal precedent in America and restored the authority of state law<\/a> to regulate and even prohibit abortion.<\/p>\r\n

At the time of the Dobbs<\/i> ruling, North Carolina law banned abortion at the 20th week of a woman’s pregnancy, except in medical emergencies. But, a federal judge blocked that law while Roe<\/i> was still the law of the land. With Roe<\/i>‘s demise, the judge dismissed the injunction, reinstating the 20-week abortion ban<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

In light of the Dobbs<\/i> ruling, the North Carolina General Assembly tried to pass a more restrictive abortion law in 2023. Although Republican lawmakers had a majority in both the State Senate and the State House, they did not have the votes needed to override Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s expected veto.<\/p>\r\n

In early 2023, in a dramatic turn of events, Democratic state representative Tricia Cotham<\/a> announced that she was leaving the Democratic party and becoming a Republican. Cotham’s vote became key as it provided state Republicans with a veto-proof supermajority in both the State House and State Senate.<\/p>\r\n

By May 2023, state lawmakers passed Senate Bill 20, the current 12-week ban. Although Cooper vetoed the law, the new supermajority was able to override the veto and put the new law into effect on July 1, 2023. Now, the law limits abortion access in North Carolina to the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. Exceptions only apply in the following cases:<\/p>\r\n