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A federal judge is set to hear arguments over whether Georgia’s restrictive new abortion law should be allowed to take effect while a legal challenge is pending.The law bans abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can occur as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. It allows for limited exceptions. (9/23)

The American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia has asked U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to stop the law from going into effect while the case makes its way through the court system. The ACLU argued in a June complaint that the law violates a woman’s constitutional right of access to abortion until about 24 weeks of pregnancy, as established in the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade. (Prabhu, 9/23)

A federal judge will hear opening statements Monday in a lawsuit challenging Tennessee’s 48-hour waiting period before abortions. Five of the state’s seven abortion clinics are suing over the law, claiming it violates the U.S. Constitution. They will try to prove in federal court in Nashville that it places an undue burden on women seeking abortions. (Loller, 9/23)