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A British Court in 2019 ruled that a mentally disabled woman must have an abortion, even though the order was against both the woman’s wishes and her parents’ wishes. Would the parents be morally justified in defying the authority of the court? Is the principle “respect authority” a perfect duty, or is it imperfect? In what way is the duty to obey a court order and the parents’ responsibility both to their daughter and to God related to justice? (For the definitions of imperfect and perfect duties, see the Perfect and Imperfect Duties Reading.)

Write a dialogue post that provides an answer the questions above. Apply the concepts presented in this week’s readings to formulate your initial response and your reply to at least one classmate. Initial posts must have 250-350 words.

A successful post and response will contain the following elements:

Meets the word count guidelines and is on time.
Is a thoughtful answer to the questions presented in the assignment instructions.
Demonstrates an understanding of perfect and imperfect duties and integrates these concepts into the initial post.
Shows an understanding of justice (ie. to give to another what is due) as it is defined in the readings. Ensure you integrate this concept into the initial post.
Demonstrates excellent readability and is error-free..
Dialogue Prompt: A British Court in 2019 ruled that a mentally disabled woman must have an abortion, even though the order was against both the woman’s wishes and her parents’ wishes. Would the parents be morally justified in defying the authority of the court? Is the principle “respect authority” a perfect duty, or is it imperfect? In what way is the duty to obey a court order and the parents’ responsibility both to their daughter and to God related to justice? (For the definitions of imperfect and perfect duties, see the Perfect and Imperfect Duties Reading.)

Sample Solution

This situation presents a complex ethical challenge. Respecting authority is generally considered an imperfect duty – we should strive to follow legitimate authority, but there can be exceptions. Here, the court order conflicts with the woman’s autonomy (right to self-determination) and potentially her religious beliefs.

The parents’ duty to their daughter is a perfect duty – a constant obligation to protect her well-being. Here, “justice” demands they act in her best interests. However, the court presumably made its decision based on their assessment of her best interests.

Here’s where things get murky.

  • If the court demonstrably ignored the woman’s wishes or failed to consider all options (like the mother raising the child), defying the court could be justified to protect her autonomy and potentially her religious beliefs (depending on their faith).
  • However, defying a court order can have severe consequences, potentially harming the woman further.

The parents should explore all legal avenues first: appealing the decision, presenting new evidence, or seeking alternative care arrangements. If those fail, a difficult moral choice remains. Disobeying the court, though potentially the most loving act towards their daughter, carries significant risk.

Here’s a point for further discussion: is there a moral obligation to exhaust all legal options before defying authority, even if the legal system seems flawed?

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