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While the outcome of abortion cases seems to depend exclusively on the undue-burden standard, we have mostly missed the linchpin of recent decisions: conclusions about who has the authority to resolve uncertain scientific or moral questions. Using original archival research, this Article traces the history and present-day impact of the law and politics of uncertainty doctrine in abortion law. Uncertainty has stood at the center of abortion litigation since Roe v. Wade.! In the early 1970s, supporters of legal abortion argued that if there was disagreement about the science or morality surrounding the beginning of human life, lawmakers could not justifiably force everyone else to adopt one position on the matter. 2 Later, as part of the campaign to see Roe overruled, pro-life attorneys presented the moral and scientific uncertainty surrounding abortion as a reason that Roe had become unworkable. 3 Planned Parenthood …