Comment on Abortion and the rule of law on the Florida Supreme Court | Opinion

Having argued landmark privacy cases before the Florida Supreme Court, I’m saddened to see the court rule that a woman’s ability to have an abortion is no longer protected under the Florida Constitution. As a lover of the rule of law, the sadness is in watching the court devolve into a third political branch of government, where decisions appear to be based upon the personal beliefs and political agendas of the justices and the governor who appoints them. Respect for the law depends upon the public perceiving that judicial determinations are based upon underlying legal principles rather than a court’s current personnel. Our governor appointed supreme court justices with reported anti-abortion credentials, leading pundits to predict that the court would deliver on that agenda.