Bellotti v. Baird

A Massachusetts statute required parental notice and consent before an unmarried minor could obtain an abortion, with a fallback procedure letting the minor seek a judge's approval if a parent refused consent, but the law still required parental notification in every case regardless. Baird (plaintiff) brought a class action on behalf of pregnant minors against Massachusetts's attorney general, Bellotti (defendant), and the Commonwealth, arguing the law violated the abortion right recognized in Roe v. Wade. The district court held the statute unconstitutional, and Bellotti appealed to the Supreme Court.