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Kaasboer v. Elfenbein

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Kaasboer v. Elfenbein refers to a legal case that was brought before the legal court of Ludwiggerdam in V.1710. The case shaped the way abortion was viewed in the Republic of the United Cities in the Lanzerwald. Abortion had been illegal in its predecessor state, Sankt Ludwigshafen but the ban was struck from the books as part of the Union of Oudorp treaty that removed several religious inspired laws. No new law on abortion had been agreed upon by the Steden-Generaal so it was up to the court to decide whether there was a right to undergo the procedure and whether any further rights could be derived from that if access to abortion services had been hindered.

The case was brought by Emma Kaasboer, who became pregnant in the second half of 1709 when she was 16 year old by her boyfriend who was only 15 years old. Kaasboer felt she and her boyfriend were unable to care for the child and sought an abortion. Abortion services were offered by the City Clinic of Oudorp and Kaasboer arranged an appointment with the outpatient clinic specialising in reproductive health in northern Oudorp. As she walked towards the outpatient clinic, Kaasboer was stopped by Linda Elfenbein, who along with several others had formed a picket line to stop women from visiting the who questioned her about her intentions. According to Kaasboer, Elfenbein, who was 43 years old at the time, behaved in an aggressive and hysterical manner and shouted that Kaasboer was going to murder her child and go to Hell. Intimidated by the older woman, Kaasboer ran away from the clinic and did not make a new appointment, instead she gave birth to the child.

After giving birth to the child, the parents of her boyfriend decided to emigrate from Lanzerwald to an unknown destination. This left Kaasboer alone to care for the child, along with her parents who had very limited financial means. Angry over what had happened, Emma Kaasboer filed a petition with the legal court of Ludwiggerdam on 2.V.1710 claiming that Linda Elfenbein had violated her right to undergo a medical procedure and was liable for all consequences, in this case the financial burden of raising a child. Elfenbein rejected the claim and argued that she only wanted to save both mother and child from the, alleged, grave moral consequences of undergoing an abortion. The jury sided with Emma Kaasboer, especially because of the young age of the claimant and the perceived ascendance of the defendant. Elfenbein was ordered to pay Emma Kaasboer an alimony of 20 Großpfennig per calendar month, until the child would reach the age of 18, or until 25 if he attended formal education to that age.

A summary of the case, written by an observer of the Honourable Company for publication by the ESB Intelligencer, led to charities in the Benacian Union beginning a subscription campaign for the establishment of a foundling hospital in the Lanzerwald.