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Unanimous Ohio Supreme Court tosses judge’s lawsuit over reproductive rights amendment

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — One of two cases that sought to overturn Ohio’s voter-approved amendment guaranteeing abortion access and reproductive rights has been dismissed. The Ohio Supreme Court unanimously turned away a lawsuit filed by a Republican Youngstown-area judge.

The Ohio Supreme Court building from the outside
The Ohio Supreme Court building in Columbus. [Daniel Konik | Statehouse News Bureau]
The lawsuit filed by Trumbull County Common Pleas Judge David Engler was dismissed without an opinion by the court’s six Republicans and one Democrat. Engler had claimed the amendment voters approved in 2023 unconstitutionally took away his authority on parental notification for minors seeking abortions. He sued Secretary of State Frank LaRose and then-attorney general Dave Yost, both Republicans who opposed the amendment, for approving the ballot language. They asked the court to throw out the case, saying Engler didn’t have standing and had waited too long to file.

Another lawsuit claiming the amendment illegally modified multiple sections of state law is still pending in Butler County. It was filed in May by the anti-abortion group Faith2Action and other activists, including Reps. Levi Dean (R-Xenia) and Jennifer Gross (R-West Chester).

There are also lawsuits working their way to the Ohio Supreme Court filed by supporters of abortion rights to scrap existing abortion-related laws. Those include the state’s 24-hour waiting period, a ban on prescribing abortion medication via telehealth and a requirement to bury or cremate fetal tissue following an abortion.