Get set for the latest instalment of the political fight over Roe v Wade

Sarah Weddington always knew that one legal case would define her legacy – and that the headlines marking her death would read: “Roe v Wade attorney dies”.

So it has come to pass, with the attorney who argued and won the Supreme Court case which established the right to abortion in the US passing away at the age of 76.

The 1973 case where Weddington – and Linda Coffee, a former classmate of Weddington’s from the University of Texas – represented Norma McCorvey – under the pseudonym “Jane Roe” – in challenging the criminal abortion laws in Texas has been one of the defining diving lines between many Democrats and Republicans ever since.

Weddington’s death comes at a time when the Supreme Court is considering a case over a Mississippi law that would bar abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, even in cases of rape or incest. The case Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organisation is seen as extremely important by both pro-choice and anti-abortion campaigners. Many charities and campaign organisations are worried about the adverse effect on maternal mortality if restrictions are backed by the Supreme Court, particularly among women on low incomes.

In the event of a ruling that overturns Roe v Wade, a dozen states have passed so-called trigger laws, which would automatically ban abortion. While a nationwide ban would not be on the horizon, such a ruling would open the door to other states being able to develop similar laws to the proposals in Mississippi. In a brief filed to the Supreme Court, the state’s attorney general Lynn Fitch said that the precedent Roe v Wade set is “egregiously wrong”, with lawyers defending the Mississippi law also seeking for the court to reconsider a 1992 ruling in Planned Parenthood v Casey that says that states should not place an “undue burden” on women seeking abortions before a foetus could survive outside the womb, at about 24 weeks.

A ruling on the Mississippi case is expected in June, and conservatives are confident about the outcome. Not least because three new justices – all conservatives – were appointed to the Supreme Court during the presidency of Donald Trump: Neil Gorsuch in 2017, Brett Kavanaugh in 2018 and Amy Coney Barrett in 2020. The means there is currently a 6 to 3 conservative majority on the top judicial body in the US.

Speaking recently, Mike Pence – Trump’s former vice president – called on the court to end Roe v Wade, saying that he has “absolute confidence that the tide has turned for the pro-life movement”. He added: “Americans are ready for an end to the judicial tyranny of Roe v Wade.”

Only time will tell whether the Supreme Court agrees.