Women lawyers meeting explores changing landscape for abortion services

Reproductive rights were the focus Thursday of the 2024 Litigators Forum hosted by Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles.

Held at Perch restaurant in downtown Los Angeles, a panel moderated by Amy T. Brantly of Kesselman Brantly Stockinger LLP talked about the state of abortion laws post-Dobbs, and its implications for women and their doctors in California. Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, 597 U.S. 215 (2022).

The panel also discussed what the legal challenge to the FDA's approval of the abortion drug mifepristone might mean for telehealth services. FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, 23-235.

Dipti Singh, general counsel of Planned Parenthood of Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley Inc., emphasized the crucial role attorneys can play in supporting women seeking abortions, such as offering legal assistance to clinics and collaborating with the Abortion Defense Network. The panel also talked about vulnerabilities attorneys might face in assisting women seeking abortions when they live in states where the procedure is limited.

Pictured from left, Yanna S. Bouris of Knobbe Martens, Melody Z. Saadian of Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP, Amy T. Brantly of Kesselman Brantly Stockinger LLP, Anna T. Pletcher of O'Melveny & Myers LLP and Dipti Singh of Planned Parenthood.