REPRO-NETS · Reproductive Rights and the Transnational Dynamics of Legal Mobilizations

The REPRO-NETS project aims to examine the impact and agency of conservative and progressive networks of non-state actors in shaping reproductive rights in Europe through strategic uses of law. The project examines recent ""reproductive rights backsliding,"" where parliaments and constitutional courts, influenced by non-state actors, alter reproductive rights regulations, making reproductive rights in the EU increasingly dynamic and contested.Moving beyond traditional legal analyses it adopts a socio-legal perspective focusing on three novelties. First, it investigates not only ""high-profile"" legislation and constitutional courts' judgments but also ""low-profile"" laws, such as health care regulations and WHO guidelines. Secondly, it explores the legal strategies and tactics of ""pro-life"" groups and ""pro-choice"" together, compares them, and investigates the dynamics between their legal actions. Third, it examines cross-border and transnational processes and knowledge transfers as these organizations operate beyond the national state.Additionally, the project analyses the legal opportunity structures, strategies, and argumentation used by non-state actors, as well as the structural and institutional challenges of using legal mobilization in contemporary democracies. The main research question asks how transnational networks of non-state actors, both conservative and progressive, influence the reframing of reproductive rights in Europe through legal mobilization. This raises questions about how these transnational interactions influence reproductive rights reframing nationally and locally, how transnational ideas are translated into local settings by non-state actors, and why particular legal strategies are used over others. The project uses a mixed-methods approach, combining macro-level mapping and micro-level analysis. The findings will provide new insights into the legal strategies driving reproductive rights changes at national, European, and global levels.""