"Linda and I met frequently in person and talked by phone in preparation for the lawsuit. As we drafted the complaint and lined up our legal points, our constant worry was about the right plaintiffs. After Linda did some research, we decided neither the Austin volunteers nor the referral project would be certain to have standing, so we started looking for individuals who could demonstrate a more direct impact. Our first agreed-upon plaintiff was a woman we knew in Dallas who had heard Linda give a speech about the contemplated lawsuit. A brilliant women’s activist with a Ph.D. in English, she felt strongly that the Texas anti-abortion statutes kept women from making decisions that were rightfully theirs. She had no children and was not pregnant, but she had a neurochemical disorder Although pregnancy would not present a serious risk to her life, her doctor had told her it would be best if she avoided pregnancy until her condition materially improved. He also told her not to take the most effective means of contraception, the birth control pill. She and her husband offered to be plaintiffs on the basis that their normal marital intimacies were endangered because, although they were conscientiously practicing an alternative method of contraception, there was a significant risk of contraceptive failure and they knew that if she were to become pregnant, consideration for her health would suggest an abortion. In Texas, that would be illegal and therefore also dangerous to her health. Yet they did not wish to be a celibate married couple. We also needed to find a pregnant Texas woman who wanted an abortion and would be willing to be a plaintiff. At one of the meetings with the Austin women, I was explaining the need for a pregnant plaintiff and asked, “”Are any of you pregnant?” “No’”, they said, “but if you need someone who is, just give us some time.” In fact, it turned out to be a bigger problem than we anticipated. Several women who came to the referral project for information indicated they would be happy to help, but they were all at an early stage of pregnancy and had the money to get a prompt abortion-certainly the safest route for them. We did not know how long it would take us to get the case filed or how long after that it would take for a court to act. It was best for them to go ahead and have an abortion. Our search would have to continue."