2007), is a unanimous decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, written by Circuit Judge Brett Kavanaugh, in which the Court upheld a 2003 District of Columbia statute that stated the conditions for authorizing a non-emergency surgical procedure on a mentally incompetent person.

[2] In 2003, Kennedy denied the plaintiffs class action status because there was not evidence the District of Columbia would repeat the alleged harm.

The Court of Appeals held that the District of Columbia's 2003 statute was constitutional and the law may distinguish two categories of persons who lack competency.

District Judge Rudolph Contreras wrote "[t]his case involves weighty allegations that have long awaited resolution.

[12] Christine Ryan cited the decision in Tarlow in the Fordham Law Review, and wrote that courts properly apply substituted judgment analysis when the patient once had competency but became incompetent.

[13] Snopes.com fact checked whether the decision in Tarlow meant that people with disabilities could be forced to undergo elective surgeries, including abortions, and Snopes determined that the claim was a mixture of truth and falsehood.

[14] The argument in Tarlow did "authorize elective medical procedures without first making an attempt to ascertain the wishes of the patient;" however, it did not specifically mention abortion.