Georgia justices order new look at whether lawsuit challenging near-ban on abortion can proceed

Attendees of a rally on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, left flowers and candles at an altar for Amber Nicole Thurman and Candi Miller, created by Black Feminist Future Senior Power Building Organizer Yemi Combahee. The vigil is next to the Liberty Bell outside the Georgia State Capitol. Amber Nicole Thurman and Candi Miller died after not receiving timely medical care after experiencing complications from taking abortion pills. (Meimei Xu/WABE)

This story was updated on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, at 7:57 p.m.

A lawsuit challenging Georgia’s near-ban on abortion is headed back to a trial court to decide if the people who want to overturn the law have legal standing to sue.

The Georgia Supreme Court voted 6-1 on Thursday to require the trial court judge to re-examine standing issues, citing its own January decision that changed state law on who is qualified to sue.