Abortion advocates have filed a brief with the Supreme Court as it prepares to hear Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the biggest case concerning abortion regulations to come before the bench since Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The abortionists’ argument relies almost entirely on the principle of stare decisis, the idea that the court must strike down abortion restrictions because it has ruled against them in the past. But this claim, similar to so many the pro-choice movement has made, is unconvincing and weak: Precedent alone is not enough to bind the Supreme Court to a decision, especially if the precedent in question is void of any constitutional and moral basis.

The abortionists write: