Roe v. Wade - What Is "Established Law"?

[Luigi]

Others claim: Roe v. Wade is "established law" and therefore must be supported by all justices of the Supreme Court. 

I reply: "Established law" can be changed. 

1. Any law that is in effect today can be changed by a new law tomorrow. That's precisely what "law makers" do every time they meet in session - pass laws! And what was legal yesterday is illegal tomorrow, or what was illegal yesterday (marijuana use) is legal tomorrow. 

2. Granted that the longer a law is "established," the more firmly entrenched it may feel, but any law can be undone. Slavery was established law in the US from 1789 (I'm using the Constitution as my starting point since we still live under the same constitution) until 1865 - 76 years - but was overturned by a constitutional amendment. The Supreme Court had affirmed all federal laws related to slavery during that period. Prohibition was established law from 1920 to 1933 (13 years). Abortion has been established law since 1973 (48 years). Any established law can be overturned, as long as it is done according to process provided in the Constitution. 

3. The questionable legal underpinnings of Roe v. Wade make it, at best, a poorly "established" law. If the people of the US do, in fact, want abortion to be legal, they can propose and pass a law that does not have questionable underpinnings, and thus create a well "established" law. 

[Didacus]

Quite correct - agree on all points.

One can also point to prohibition.