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  • 5 - The Battle for Legal Meaning

  • Sally Sheldon, University of Bristol and University of Technology Sydney, Gayle Davis, University of Edinburgh, Jane O'Neill, University of Edinburgh, Clare Parker, University of Adelaide
  • Book:
    The Abortion Act 1967
    Published online:
    03 November 2022
    Print publication:
    17 November 2022, pp 151-189

  • Summary

    Chapter 5 considers those battles regarding the Abortion Act that found their way to the courts, as broader struggles over the meaning of the Act became framed as narrow, technical questions of statutory interpretation. We consider the role of Pro-Life (and, to a much lesser extent, Pro-Choice) groups in driving this litigation and explore how the focus and framing of these disputes would change over time in line with the shifting centre of the moral debate. We consider how meaning was given to the statutory text, emphasising the important roles played by doctors in giving meaning to the Act before these disputes reached the courts.