Die verfassungsrechtliche Bewertung des Schwangerschaftsabbruchs im Spiegel aktueller Diskussionen

Abstract

The issue of abortion is undoubtedly a highly contentious political subject with immense social significance. Internationally, divergent tendencies can be observed: On the one hand, the United States Supreme Court’s overruled Roe v. Wade in 2022, on the other hand, French legislators amended Article 34 of the Constitution of the Fifth Republic to include a regulation with regard to abortion in 2024, alongside similar attempts concerning the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. These developments have also influenced contemporary discussions in Germany, bringing the issue of abortion back to the forefront of legal and political debates. Even beyond the recently implemented repeal of the highly contested ban on “advertising abortions” in Section 219a of the German Criminal Code, the current legal framework regarding abortion in Germany is under attack again. A reform commission appointed by the previous federal government has advocated, in its final report, for the subsequent repeal of Section 218 of the Criminal Code and called for the (formal) legality of abortion, at least during the first trimester. However, given the existing case law of the Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfG), such reforms would not withstand scrutiny under the Basic Law. The United States Supreme Court has addressed the subject of abortion in three landmark decisions in 1973, 1992, and 2022. Similarly, the BVerfG issued rulings on abortion within a comparable time frame in 1975 and 1993. Given the current relevance of the topic, it may only be a matter of time before Karlsruhe is called upon to decide yet another case concerning abortion.