Abortion was fully outlawed in North Dakota in 2023 and deemed a felony for those who perform the procedure with exceptions for serious, physical threats to the mother's health in addition to rape and incest if the woman has been pregnant for less than six weeks.

North Dakota’s solicitor general called on the North Dakota Supreme Court to reinstate an abortion law struck down by a lower court until a final decision in the case is made, arguing that the ban must remain in effect because the state has a compelling interest in protecting unborn life.

The North Dakota Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Thursday appealing Judge Bruce Romanick’s ruling on the abortion case.

More than a dozen religious leaders had challenged Missouri's near-total abortion ban in 2023, on the grounds it contained explicitly religious language and violated the state constitution.