parental notification

A pregnant minor applied for judicial bypass to have an abortion without notifying her parents. The trial court denied the application on a form, but made no ruling and no findings of fact on one of the bases for judicial bypass—whether notifying her parents would lead to physical, sexual, or emotional abuse of the minor. Under the Texas Family Code, the court was required to issue a ruling and written findings of fact and conclusions of law within two business days after the application was filed.

A pregnant minor filed an application for judicial bypass to receive an abortion without notifying her parents. The district court did not rule on the application or make findings of fact, but issued a writing that sua sponte concluded that the parental bypass law was unconstitutional.

A pregnant minor applied for judicial bypass to have an abortion without notifying her parents. The trial court denied her application, finding that she was neither mature nor well-informed enough to consent to an abortion without parental notification. The Texas Supreme Court reversed, finding that Doe showed that she was sufficiently well-informed. The trial court specifically denied Doe’s application because she was allegedly unaware of the intrinsic benefits of alternatives to abortion such as parenting and adoption.

In the case In re Jane Doe, a juvenile filed a petition in the Columbiana County Court of Common Pleas, Juvenile Division, seeking a judicial bypass to obtain an abortion without parental notification. The trial court denied the request, finding that she lacked sufficient maturity and information to make the decision independently.

In the case Planned Parenthood of Central New Jersey v. Farmer (2000), the Supreme Court of New Jersey reviewed the constitutionality of the state’s Parental Notification for Minors Seeking Abortion Act. The statute required a physician to provide at least 48 hours’ advance notice to a parent before performing an abortion on a minor, without imposing a similar requirement for minors seeking prenatal care or childbirth.