What was the Trimester Rule established in Roe v Wade?

Answer 1

In Roe v. Wade, (1973), the Supreme Court established guidelines for abortion according to a strict "trimester rule."

1. No statutory restriction on abortion allowed during the first trimester.

   "For the stage prior to approximately the end of the first trimester, the abortion decision and its effectuation must be left to the medical judgment of the pregnant woman's attending physician."

2. After the first trimester, but prior to fetal viability, the State may regulate abortion in a reasonable way, if it promotes the health of the mother.

   "For the stage subsequent to approximately the end of the first trimester, the State, in promoting its interest in the health of the mother, may, if it chooses, regulate the abortion procedure in ways that are reasonably related to maternal health."

3. Once the fetus reaches viability, the States may choose to prohibit abortion except where necessary to preserve the health or life of the mother.

   "For the stage subsequent to viability the State, in promoting its interest in the potentiality of human life, may, if it chooses, regulate, and even proscribe, abortion except where necessary, in appropriate medical judgment, for the preservation of the life or health of the mother."

Case Citation:

Roe v. Wade, 410 US 113 (1973)