Will 5th Circuit uphold dismissal of challenge to La. abortion clinic regulations?
ADF attorney available to media following hearing over state’s Outpatient Abortion Facility Licensing Law
Wednesday, Dec 7, 2011
ADF attorney sound bite: Steven Aden
WHO: ADF Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden
WHAT: Available to media after oral argument in Choice v. Greenstein
WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 8, immediately following hearing, which begins at 9 a.m. CST
WHERE: John Minor Wisdom United States Court of Appeals Building (5th Circuit), 600 Camp St., Room 223, New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS — Alliance Defense Fund Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden will be available for media interviews following oral argument before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in Choice v. Greenstein. Aden will assist co-counsel for the Louisiana Secretary of Health in arguing to uphold a district court decision that threw out the lawsuit, which was filed by abortion clinics that oppose a state law requiring them to meet certain patient health and safety regulations.
“A woman’s health and safety should always be the most important concern in cases like this, and that is the paramount concern of state health officials,” said ADF Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden. “The district court was right to reject this challenge to basic health and safety regulations, and we are hopeful the appeals court will uphold the ruling.”
In November of last year, abortion clinics represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights filed suit against Act 490, Louisiana’s Outpatient Abortion Facility Licensing Law enacted in June 2010. They appealed to the 5th Circuit after the district court dismissed the lawsuit on multiple grounds.
The law states that Louisiana’s secretary of health “may deny a license, may refuse to renew a license, or may revoke an existing license, if an investigation or survey determines that the application or license is in violation of any provision” of the regulations governing outpatient abortion facilities “or in violation of any federal or state law or regulation.” The law also allows the Department of Health to immediately suspend a license if “the violation[s] pose an imminent or immediate threat to the health, welfare, or safety of a client or patient.”
In its ruling dismissing the lawsuit, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana wrote, “The Court finds that the Plaintiffs will not suffer any significant hardship. Plaintiffs claim that they will suffer severe hardship because they will be required to make ‘immediate and significant, but unascertainable, changes in their operations.’ However, nothing in Act 490 requires Plaintiffs to alter their conduct; instead, it alters the State’s conduct in detecting and addressing violations.”
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
WHAT: Available to media after oral argument in Choice v. Greenstein
WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 8, immediately following hearing, which begins at 9 a.m. CST
WHERE: John Minor Wisdom United States Court of Appeals Building (5th Circuit), 600 Camp St., Room 223, New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS — Alliance Defense Fund Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden will be available for media interviews following oral argument before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in Choice v. Greenstein. Aden will assist co-counsel for the Louisiana Secretary of Health in arguing to uphold a district court decision that threw out the lawsuit, which was filed by abortion clinics that oppose a state law requiring them to meet certain patient health and safety regulations.
“A woman’s health and safety should always be the most important concern in cases like this, and that is the paramount concern of state health officials,” said ADF Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden. “The district court was right to reject this challenge to basic health and safety regulations, and we are hopeful the appeals court will uphold the ruling.”
In November of last year, abortion clinics represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights filed suit against Act 490, Louisiana’s Outpatient Abortion Facility Licensing Law enacted in June 2010. They appealed to the 5th Circuit after the district court dismissed the lawsuit on multiple grounds.
The law states that Louisiana’s secretary of health “may deny a license, may refuse to renew a license, or may revoke an existing license, if an investigation or survey determines that the application or license is in violation of any provision” of the regulations governing outpatient abortion facilities “or in violation of any federal or state law or regulation.” The law also allows the Department of Health to immediately suspend a license if “the violation[s] pose an imminent or immediate threat to the health, welfare, or safety of a client or patient.”
In its ruling dismissing the lawsuit, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana wrote, “The Court finds that the Plaintiffs will not suffer any significant hardship. Plaintiffs claim that they will suffer severe hardship because they will be required to make ‘immediate and significant, but unascertainable, changes in their operations.’ However, nothing in Act 490 requires Plaintiffs to alter their conduct; instead, it alters the State’s conduct in detecting and addressing violations.”
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
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