Being Dragged Through Court Because of Your Involvement with Abortion, But Can’t Afford the Legal Fees? We May Be Able to Help!

Help Us Fight Back Against Efforts to Roll Back Gender Justice

Extremist judges will not stop endangering the lives of pregnant people or people who may become pregnant—overturning Roe v. Wade, attacking medication abortion, threatening the future of IVF, and this week at SCOTUS, emergency abortion care.

Our lawyers are waging strategic fights that make clear what is at stake for people who can become pregnant and seek to bolster our fundamental rights to control our lives, futures, and destinies.

Make a donation to the National Women’s Law Center to power the fight for accessible health care and a better future for all. Every donation is 100% tax-deductible.

Being Dragged Through Court Because of Your Involvement with Abortion, But Can’t Afford the Legal Fees? We May Be Able to Help!

In response to the legal chaos unleashed by the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the National Women’s Law Center created the Abortion Access Legal Defense Fund.

Its aim is simple:

To help cover legal expenses for individuals or organizations facing legal consequences because they sought abortion or helped someone else seeking one, and who face substantial financial hardship.

If that sounds like you, read on to see if your case might be eligible for funding!

1. Did you get or support someone in getting an abortion?

Your case may be eligible for funding if: 

You sought an abortion, information about one, or assistance obtaining one; or
You have helped someone else who sought an abortion or information about one.

Here are just a few examples of the individuals we may be able to assist:

A person who’s had an abortion

A person who sought information about how to get an abortion (this could include searching information online or asking someone for help).

Friends or family members who have helped their loved ones get abortions (this could include driving them to a clinic or paying for their care).

A teacher or social worker who gave someone information about how to access abortion.

An abortion fund that helped someone afford their abortion.

2. Do you have financial need?

Our Fund supports individuals and organizations that cannot afford their legal expenses.

By that, we mean in cases where it would be difficult to get adequate legal representation without financial support, or where the cost of such representation will impose substantial hardship on the client or their attorney. Whether an individual case meets the financial need requirement is determined on a case-by-case basis. 

If you think you might meet the requirements above, here’s how you can apply for funding!

First, you need a lawyer.

Attorneys must apply for financial support from our Fund on behalf of their clients.

That means your next step is to send your lawyer to this landing page, where they will provide their contact information. Or instead of having your lawyer do it, you can fill in your attorney’s contact information for them. Then, our team may schedule a screening interview with your attorney to determine if the Fund can support your case and to get the application process started.

Okay, but what if I don’t have a lawyer?

Here are some resources that might be able to help you get a lawyer:

If you have sought abortion or information about abortion for yourself, contact If/When/How’s Repro Legal Helpline.

If you have helped someone else obtain an abortion or information about one, contact the Abortion Defense Network, which the National Women’s Law Center helped launch in February 2023.  

We are in awe of the courage it takes to seek or support abortion at this terrifying moment in our country. With this Fund, we hope to make it clear that we’re rallying to increase the resources available to support people like you.

If you have any remaining questions about eligibility, or want to get started with the application process, check out the resources below!