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# The Dobbs draft opinion, published by Politico — confirmed authentic

Politico published the draft majority opinion late on May 2, 2022 (US time). The Court confirmed it was authentic but not final.

Leaked on 03 May 2022

![Evidence tray card: The Dobbs draft opinion, published by Politico — confirmed authentic](https://leakly.com/assets/og/dobbs-draft-opinion.png)

At 00:39 UTC on May 3, 2022, @politico posted that an initial draft majority opinion by Justice Samuel Alito, obtained by [Politico](https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/02/supreme-court-abortion-draft-opinion-00029473), would strike down Roe v. Wade.

> **POLITICO** @politico
>
> The Supreme Court has voted to strike down Roe v. Wade, according to an initial draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito and obtained by POLITICO.
> “We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” Alito writes. https://t.co/nl3JFLx9xg
>
> 40,084 likes · 26,079 reposts · counts as of 09 Nov 2026, 07:12 UTC
>
> — POLITICO (@politico) [May 3, 2022](https://twitter.com/politico/status/1521288272021901312)

not in our leaker index

On May 3, the [Supreme Court](https://www.supremecourt.gov/publicinfo/press/pressreleases/pr_05-03-22) said the document was authentic but did not represent a decision or any justice’s final position. Chief Justice John Roberts directed the Marshal of the Court to investigate the source. [SCOTUSblog](https://www.scotusblog.com/2022/05/roberts-orders-leak-investigation-as-court-confirms-authenticity-of-draft-opinion/) and [CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/03/supreme-court-says-leaked-abortion-draft-is-authentic-roberts-orders-investigation-into-leak.html) reported the statement.

Confirmed as authentic. This story covers the draft’s authenticity only.

[Confirmed]

## What happened later

Confirmed: authentic per the Supreme Court, May 3, 2022.

## Sources

* [Original X post by @politico](https://x.com/politico/status/1521288272021901312)
* [Politico — Supreme Court has voted to overturn abortion rights, draft opinion shows](https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/02/supreme-court-abortion-draft-opinion-00029473)
* [Supreme Court of the United States — Press Releases](https://www.supremecourt.gov/publicinfo/press/pressreleases/pr_05-03-22)
* [SCOTUSblog — Roberts orders leak investigation as court confirms authenticity of draft opinion](https://www.scotusblog.com/2022/05/roberts-orders-leak-investigation-as-court-confirms-authenticity-of-draft-opinion/)
* [CNBC — Supreme Court says leaked abortion draft is authentic; Roberts orders investigation into leak](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/03/supreme-court-says-leaked-abortion-draft-is-authentic-roberts-orders-investigation-into-leak.html)

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