"A court ruling that a woman with learning disabilities must have an abortion against her wishes has been overturned on appeal."

"The decision came after the woman’s mother, a former midwife, challenged a court order issued on Friday. The appeal court judges Lord Justice McCombe, Lady Justice King and Lord Justice Jackson said they would give reasons for their decision at a later date.... On Friday, the court of protection in London decided an abortion was in the best interests of the woman, who is in her 20s, and is 22 weeks pregnant. She has the mental capacity of a six- to nine-year-old child.... The NHS trust that is caring for the woman had sought the court’s permission for doctors to terminate the pregnancy. Three specialists, an obstetrician and two psychiatrists, said a termination was the best option because of the risk to the woman’s psychiatric health if pregnancy continued. Both the woman and her mother were opposed to the abortion, and the woman’s mother had offered to care for the child. A social worker who works with the woman said the pregnancy should continue. The court was told last week that the woman had a 'moderately severe' learning disorder and a mood disorder. The judge said she was not sure the woman understood what having a baby meant. 'I think she would like to have a baby in the same way she would like to have a nice doll'... Earlier on Monday, before the appeal court’s decision, John Sherrington, a bishop in the Catholic diocese of Westminster, said: 'Forcing a woman to have an abortion against her will, and that of her close family, infringes her human rights, not to mention the right of her unborn child to life in a family that has committed to caring for this child."

The Guardian reports.

We talked about the lower court's decision yesterday, here.