Abortion clinic buffer zones
Eleanor McCullen v. Coakley
In brief
The Supreme Court ruled that Massachusetts’s 35-foot clinic buffer-zone law violates the First Amendment and overturned the First Circuit’s ruling.
- Where it stands
- Decided
Decided 9-0 · June 26, 2014 · Opinion by Chief Justice Roberts
- What it’s about
- The Supreme Court ruled that Massachusetts’s 35-foot buffer-zone law around abortion-clinic entrances violated the First Amendment, overturned the First Circuit’s decision, and sent the case back to the lower court (remanded).
- Who it affects
- The Court ruled that Massachusetts’s 35-foot buffer-zone law around abortion-clinic entrances violates the First Amendment.
Summary: written with AI from the case record.
What it's about
The Massachusetts law set a 35-foot buffer zone around entrances to abortion clinics.
Question presented
1. Did the First Circuit err in upholding the Massachusetts law under the First Amendment, as applied to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment? 2. If the Supreme Court's ruling in Hill v. Colorado applies, should that ruling be limited or overruled?
What the Court decided
Holding
The Massachusetts Act violates the First Amendment. 708 F. 3d 1, reversed and remanded.
- Result
- Reversed
The vote
- Joined the judgment
- Concurred in a separate opinion
- Wrote an opinion
What's next
The case returns to the First Circuit for further proceedings.
Documents
Opinions
Docket activity
New analysis added
AI analysis generated: Case Briefing
AI analysis generated: Decision Record
Case data updated: summary, question_presented, generation_metadata
Case data updated: question_presented, extraction_metadata
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Opinion added: McCullen
Sources
Primary materials plus reporting. Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.