Georgia's law, signed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp in 2019, was one of a wave of restrictive abortion measures that took effect in Republican-controlled states after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022 and ended a national right to abortion. It prohibited most abortions once a "detectable human heartbeat" was present.

The state Supreme Court reinstated Georgia’s restrictive abortion law one week after a Fulton County Superior Court judge ruled it was unconstitutional.

Georgia's Republican attorney general is appealing a judge's ruling that the state's abortion ban is unconstitutional

ATLANTA − Georgia’s abortion ban has been struck down by a Fulton Superior Court judge, making the Peach State one of only two Southern states to allow abortion access after six weeks.  The 26-page decision Monday from Fulton Superior Judge Robert McBurney repealed Georgia’s Living Infants Fairness and Equality (LIFE) Act,

The state’s abortion law, which took effect in 2022, was deemed in violation of Georgia’s constitution. Judge Robert McBurney wrote in his order “liberty in Georgia includes ... the power of a woman to control her own body.

Any changes to abortion policy in Southern states could have an impact that resonates beyond their borders. Most states in the region have bans in place, forcing women who are seeking abortion procedures to travel to obtain them.

Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr is asking the state's Supreme Court to reinstate its six-week abortion ban, after a county judge earlier this week ruled it unconstitutional.

A Georgia judge struck down the state’s six-week abortion ban on Monday, in what advocates hope is a sign of growing energy for protecting reproductive rights in the judiciary across the country. The ruling “demonstrates the momentum that is