The Supreme Court's nine justices met in private for the first time since the leak of a draft opinion that would overrule Roe v. Wade and sharply curtail abortion rights in roughly half the states.
No one, aside from the justices, attended, according to custom, and the most junior among them, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, was responsible for taking notes.
The court offered no word on what was discussed in Thursday's gathering in the justices' private, wood-paneled conference room, other than to indicate at least one decision will be announced on Monday. By custom, no one aside from the justices attended.
The abortion case is among 37 unresolved cases that were argued in the fall, winter and spring. The justices typically issue all their decisions by early summer.
“The court right now, we had our conference this morning, we’re doing our work,” Alito said, according to The Washington Post. “We’re taking new cases, we’re headed toward the end of the term, which is always a frenetic time as we get our opinions out.”
Justice Samuel Alito, the justice who wrote the leaked draft opinion, dodged at least one question about the high court’s mood during a virtual question-and-answer session on Thursday with students at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University.
