Plaintiffs in this case, an abortion counseling facility, an abortion provider,1 and a physician, challenge the constitutionality of the Georgia Parental Notification Act, Ga.Code Ann. Secs. 15-11-110 to -118 (1990)--an act compelling persons, under threat of criminal sanctions, to notify an unemancipated minor's parent or guardian before performing an abortion on her.2

The Georgia legislature enacted its first parental notice law on April 14, 1987. See Parental Notification Act, 1987 Ga. Laws 1013. This act required a pregnant minor to notify a parent or guardian before obtaining an abortion; she could verify that she had given notice in two ways: (1) her parent or legal guardian could accompany her to the abortion facility and provide an affidavit attesting to parentage or guardianship or (2) another adult could accompany her to the facility and furnish an affidavit stating that the minor had notified a parent, legal guardian, or person standing in loco parentis. If the minor could not--or did not want to--comply with these requirements, she could petition the court to waive them. Id.

Following suit by Planned Parenthood, the district court enjoined the implementation of the Act. See Planned Parenthood Ass'n v. Harris, 670 F. Supp. 971 (N.D.Ga.1987) (Planned Parenthood I ).3 The court held, inter alia, that the "accompanying adult" feature of the Act unduly burdened the liberty interest of a minor who willingly involved a parent in her abortion decision and, in addition, intruded on the family's privacy, i.e., its "interest in avoiding disclosure of personal matters." The court also addressed the constitutionality of the Act's judicial bypass procedure, holding that it did not guarantee sufficient expedition and confidentiality to conform to the Supreme Court's decision in Bellotti v. Baird, 443 U.S. 622, 99 S. Ct. 3035, 61 L. Ed. 2d 797 (1979) (plurality opinion).4 The State appealed.

While the appeal was pending, however, the Georgia legislature amended the Act in an attempt to harmonize it with the district court's ruling. See Parental Notification Act Amendments, 1988 Ga.Laws 661. Planned Parenthood, believing that the amendments did not cure the Act's constitutional defects, again sued to enjoin its operation. See Planned Parenthood Ass'n v. Harris, 691 F. Supp. 1419 (N.D.Ga.1988) (Planned Parenthood II ). On June 16, 1988, a panel of this court remanded Planned Parenthood I to the district court, which, pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 42, consolidated the two cases. On July 11, 1988, the district court entered an order enjoining the implementation of the amended Act.5 The State now appeals this order.

The Act forbids a physician, or any other person, from performing an abortion upon an unemancipated minor unless (1) the minor signs a form indicating that she "freely and without coercion" consents to the abortion and (2) one of her parents or guardians is notified, actually or constructively, in accordance with the Act. Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-112(a).6 Notice may be given in three ways. First, the physician, or his agent, may notify the minor's parent or guardian in person or by telephone that the minor wants to have an abortion. If the parent or guardian indicates either that consultation with the minor is unnecessary or that he previously had been advised of the minor's wishes, the abortion may proceed immediately; otherwise, the minor must wait twenty-four hours. Second, the physician, or his agent, may notify the parent or guardian by "regular mail." If the physician chooses this method of notification, he may rely on a statutory provision that deems delivery to have occurred forty-eight hours after mailing "unless delivery is otherwise sooner established." A twenty-four hour waiting period again applies unless the parent or guardian tells the physician that he already has been notified that the minor is seeking an abortion or that he does not need time to consult with her. Third, if the minor wishes to further expedite the process, the Act permits her parent or guardian to furnish a statement affirming that he has been notified. Under this alternative, the abortion may proceed immediately. Id.

If the minor, for whatever reason, does not want to notify her parents, she can petition a juvenile court to waive the Act's requirements. See Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-112(b).7 The Act instructs the juvenile court to grant a waiver if it finds either that the minor is mature, id. Sec. 15-11-114(c)(1), or that notice to her parent would not be in her best interests, id. Sec. 15-11-114(c)(2).

The minor's waiver petition proceeds in accordance with the Act and its implementing rules, the Uniform Juvenile Court Rules and the Court of Appeals Rules. These permit the minor to file her petition in the juvenile court of any Georgia county, id. Sec. 15-11-112(b); whereupon, a guardian ad litem is appointed to assist her, Ga.Unif.Juv.Ct.R. 23.2. The court must conduct a hearing on the petition within three days of the filing date, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-113; Ga.Unif.Juv.Ct.R. 23.5, and then render its decision within twenty-four hours of the hearing, Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-114(d); Ga.Unif.Juv.Ct.R. 23.6. If the hearing is not held, or the decision not issued, within these time periods, the petition is deemed to be granted. Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-113, -114(d).

If the juvenile court denies the minor's petition, she may appeal. Id. Sec. 15-11-114(e). The Georgia Court of Appeals Rules require that she initiate the appeal by filing a notice of appeal and a certified copy of the juvenile court order with the appellate court. Ga.Ct.App.R. 51(c). Within five calendar days8 from the date of filing, the juvenile court must deliver the record to the court of appeals, which then must issue its decision no more than five days from the date it receives the record. Id. R. 51(c), (e).

To ensure the confidentiality of the hearing and appeals process, see Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-114(b), (e), the Act mandates that the record be sealed, id. Sec. 15-11-114(d).9 In addition to this general directive, the Uniform Juvenile Court Rules instruct the court to redact the name of the minor if it appears in any of the public records, including the transcript of the proceeding, Ga.Unif.Juv.Ct.R. 23.7, and the Court of Appeals Rules mandate that the record "be considered and treated by the [appellate] Court as confidential"--its contents must be sealed upon conclusion of the appeal, and they may not be disclosed except upon order of the court. Ga.Ct.App.R. 51(j).

Planned Parenthood challenges two aspects of the Act's notification requirement and five aspects of the judicial bypass procedure.10 It contends that the notice provision is defective because (1) it mandates regular mail notification of parents over more expeditious means and (2) it subjects minors to a twenty-four hour delay following notification. Planned Parenthood claims that these requirements place an undue burden on a minor's fundamental right to an abortion since they are not narrowly tailored to further an important state interest.11 Planned Parenthood also challenges the judicial bypass procedure established by the Act and its implementing rules because (1) it does not provide a mechanism for a minor to prove that the state has failed to act upon her petition within the requisite statutory time frame (and, thus, that she is constructively authorized to obtain an abortion); (2) it does not adequately preserve a minor's anonymity; (3) it places a potential third-party veto over a minor's decision by requiring the juvenile court intake officer to divert a minor's petition or recommend its dismissal if he concludes that this is in the best interests of the minor and the public; (4) it burdens a minor's abortion right by mandating the appointment of a guardian ad litem, who may oppose the petition based on his own view of the minor's best interests; and (5) it is not sufficiently expeditious. With these defects, Planned Parenthood argues, the Georgia procedure cannot comport with Bellotti v. Baird.

After reviewing these challenges, the district court enjoined implementation of the amended Act, holding that it unduly burdened the minor's liberty and privacy interests. The court first determined that the regular mail requirement was unconstitutional. According to the court, the legislature contemplated delivery only by United States Postal Service first-class mail and not by more expeditious means of delivery such as express mail12 or Federal Express. Given this interpretation, the requirement was invalid--the State had not offered any justification for its decision to restrict the permissible means of written notification. The court did, however, uphold the twenty-four hour waiting period, noting that this requirement fostered the State's interest in promoting family consultation.13

The district court also found several infirmities in the judicial bypass procedure. The court cited (1) the Act's failure to provide constitutionally adequate anonymity; (2) the absence of a requirement that court officials provide written documentation to a minor when a constructive order issues; (3) the possible veto of a minor's decision by the intake officer; and (4) the appointment of a guardian ad litem in all cases without sufficient articulation of his role in the bypass procedure. The court therefore enjoined the implementation of the Act.

In reviewing a district court's grant of a preliminary injunction, this court will reverse only when the district court abuses its discretion. Findings of fact made in connection with a grant of a preliminary injunction are set aside only if clearly erroneous. Conclusions of law, however, are reviewable de novo. Ferrero v. Associated Materials Inc., 923 F.2d 1441, 1444 (11th Cir.1991); see also Salve Regina College v. Russell, --- U.S. ----, ----, 111 S. Ct. 1217, 1225, 113 L. Ed. 2d 190 (1991) (courts of appeals must review state-law determinations of district courts de novo). Applying these standards to the instant case, we conclude that the district court abused its discretion.14

We organize our discussion of the amended Act as follows. In part III of this opinion, we examine the Act's notification requirements, demonstrating that, taken together, they do not unduly burden the minor's abortion decision. In part IV, we show that the Georgia Act's judicial bypass procedure, even if judged pursuant to the Bellotti requirements, survives constitutional scrutiny. Accordingly, we hold that the district court improperly enjoined the implementation of the Act.15

Planned Parenthood first claims that Georgia's regular mail notification requirement and twenty-four hour waiting period unduly burden a minor's abortion decision. We address these issues in turn.

When a minor asks her physician to perform an abortion, the physician may notify the minor's parent in two ways. First, the physician, or his agent, may inform the parent of the minor's decision in person or by telephone. Second, he, or his agent, may notify the parent by "regular mail," with delivery deemed to have occurred after forty-eight hours, unless he proves that his letter arrived sooner. Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-112(a)(1)(C). If the minor wishes further to expedite the process, she may take the physician a statement from either of her parents, showing that the parent was notified. Id. Sec. 15-11-112(a)(1)(A). By choosing the latter option, the minor relieves the physician of any duty to contact her parent.

Planned Parenthood makes two attacks on these provisions. It first contends that by limiting written notification by the physician to notice by regular mail, the Georgia Act is not narrowly tailored to further the State's interests: the Act excludes other means of written notification that are more expeditious, namely, express mail and Federal Express. We note at the outset that while a statute must be narrowly tailored to the State's interest, an abortion statute will not be invalidated "because it does not correspond perfectly in all cases to the asserted state interest." City of Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health, Inc., 462 U.S. 416, 438, 103 S. Ct. 2481, 2497, 76 L. Ed. 2d 687 (1983) (Akron I ); see also id. ("the lines drawn ... must be reasonable " (emphasis added)). Thus, while we agree that the Georgia legislature has not denominated all conceivable forms of expeditious notification, we find that the contours of the Act are justified by, and are sufficiently tailored to, the State's interests and therefore survive constitutional scrutiny. Georgia provides suitable avenues for a minor who wishes quickly to notify her parents and proceed with her abortion; at the same time, it accommodates the State's interest in ensuring that the minor's decision is voluntary and informed.

We believe that by limiting written notice to notice by the United States Postal Service--and excluding notice by private carriers such as Federal Express and Airborne Express--Georgia has enacted reasonable regulations that foster its important state interest in protecting immature minors. When a state drafts a parental notice law, speedy delivery is not the state's only legitimate concern; the legislature also will want to craft its legislation to ensure that the parent actually receives notice--only then can consultation between parent and minor take place. Accordingly, a state may require that the physician give notice through a means that is highly reliable and minimizes the possibility of interception. The legislature may permit notice by telephone or in person, or by some other means that guarantees sufficient reliability; it may refuse to recognize notice where a physician simply sends a note home with a minor or uses an uncertified mail service since, with either of these methods, there is a substantial likelihood that the notice will not reach its destination. Georgia's designation of the United States Postal Service over private delivery services advances these interests; the United States Postal Service operates under stringent regulations, see 39 C.F.R. Secs. 1.1-3003.14 (1990), which promote greater reliability, expedition, and confidentiality than delivery by private carrier. These governmental assurances sufficiently support the Georgia limitation.

Planned Parenthood next argues that, even if Georgia properly excluded private delivery services, it should allow a physician to notify the parent by express mail--a service offered by the United States Postal Service--as an alternative to notice by telephone, in person, or by regular first-class mail. According to Planned Parenthood, Georgia excluded express mail delivery for no discernable reason. Even if Georgia had limited its statute in this manner,16 we believe that it would survive constitutional scrutiny. As we state above, a statute need not perfectly correspond to a state's asserted interests to survive strict scrutiny. When a statute specifies several alternative means of notification, as long as these means, on the whole, are narrowly tailored to the state's interest in promoting parental consultation, we must uphold it.

That the Georgia Act is sufficiently tailored to the State's interest in protecting immature minors is apparent when we compare it to the notice provision examined in Ohio v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health, --- U.S. ----, 110 S. Ct. 2972, 111 L. Ed. 2d 405 (1990) (Akron II ). In Akron II, the Court upheld an Ohio statute that requires physicians to give notice by telephone or in person, if the physician can do so through "reasonable effort." See id. at ----, 110 S.Ct. at 2977. Only if those efforts fail may the physician resort to constructive notice by both regular and certified mail;17 delivery then is deemed to have occurred after forty-eight hours. Thus, under the Ohio statute, if a physician cannot reach a parent in person or by telephone, the only other option is to wait forty-eight hours under the constructive delivery provision. The Georgia Act is less restrictive than the Ohio statute in two respects. First, although it permits actual notice in person and by telephone like the Ohio statute, the Georgia Act allows a physician to notify a parent by regular mail before attempting these means of notification.18 Second, the Georgia statute provides that once a physician sends notice by regular mail, he can proceed with an abortion before the forty-eight hour delivery period expires if he can prove that the parent actually received his notice earlier. Georgia's decision to allow actual notice by regular mail thus supplements what is constitutionally required--it could have required notice exclusively by telephone or in person, allowing constructive notice only as an alternative. Accordingly, we hold that the Georgia Act provides sufficient alternative means of notification that effectuate, and are narrowly tailored to, the State's interests.

Planned Parenthood further contends that the Act's constructive delivery provision is constitutionally infirm since it forces a minor to wait seventy-two hours to obtain an abortion if her physician cannot contact her parents by telephone, in person, or by regular mail.19 When a minor who seeks an abortion is unable to notify her parent, her decision to abort still must be protected--and the Act does this by permitting a physician to send a letter to the minor's parent and deeming delivery forty-eight hours later. The constructive delivery provision ensures that, with no parental action, and no actual notice to her parent, a minor can proceed with her abortion. She simply must wait seventy-two hours from the time her physician sends the letter: forty-eight hours for the deemed delivery and then twenty-four hours for the waiting period. We do not believe that this provision unduly burdens a minor's abortion right. Keeping in mind that notice by regular mail, with the deemed delivery provision, serves the dual function of protecting those minors whose parents cannot be located and providing actual notice to a parent when a physician chooses this method of notification, we believe that the legislature appropriately stipulated a constructive delivery time that approximated--or that, in all probability, was less than--delivery time by regular mail. Thus, the constructive delivery provision, in conjunction with the waiting period, survives constitutional scrutiny. See Hodgson, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2926 (upholding Minnesota notice statute with an effective waiting period of seventy-two hours: a one day "deemed delivery" constructive notice period followed by a forty-eight hour waiting period); see also Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2972 (upholding Ohio statute that permits a physician, who after a "reasonable effort" has been unable to notify a minor's parent in person or by telephone, to perform an abortion after forty-eight hours constructive notice by both ordinary and certified mail).

In sum, we believe that the Georgia legislature provides a reasonable accommodation between the State's interest in assuring that parents receive notice so that family consultation can take place and a minor's interest in being allowed to carry out her decision to abort as expeditiously as possible. We therefore conclude that the district court abused its discretion by enjoining this provision.

Planned Parenthood also challenges the twenty-four hour waiting period following notification, claiming that it is not narrowly tailored to the State's interest in ensuring that a minor's decision is voluntary and informed. We first note that a minor who wishes quickly to notify her parent of her decision to seek an abortion may avoid the statutory waiting period if she simply furnishes a statement from the parent or guardian verifying that he has been notified. Of course, if the parent or guardian is uncooperative or unavailable, the minor must rely on physician-initiated notification, i.e., notice which does not require affirmative parental action. Under physician-initiated notice--notice in person, by telephone, or by regular mail--the Act requires the minor to wait one day before she obtains an abortion. No waiting period is required, however, if her parent or guardian indicates either that consultation with the minor is unnecessary or that he or she previously had been advised of the minor's wishes. Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-112(a)(1)(C).

We believe that the Georgia consultation period helps ensure that a minor's decision is knowing and intelligent. This becomes apparent when we consider the operation of an act identical to the Georgia Act, but without a waiting period. Under such a statute, the state's interest in promoting parental input in a minor's decision easily could be thwarted. A minor, for example, might visit her physician and inform him of her decision; the physician then would notify the minor's parent or guardian that she is seeking an abortion. The physician's obligation is complete after he makes the call--if the minor's parent asks to speak with the minor to persuade her to talk over the decision with him, the minor (or the physician) could deny the request and proceed with the abortion immediately. Even if the physician persuades the minor to speak with her parent for a few minutes, such circumstances will not be conducive to rational consultation between the minor and parent. The parent likely will be surprised to learn that the minor is seeking an abortion--or even that she is pregnant; in addition, he may not have had an opportunity to clearly formulate his own views on the safety or morality of abortion vis-a-vis childbirth. Any assistance he could provide in a brief phone conversation probably would be minimal. The reasonable approach for the minor and her physician under these circumstances is to postpone the abortion for a reasonable time to allow the parent to collect his thoughts and then discuss the minor's choices rationally.

This is, in fact, what the Georgia statute requires a physician to do. Under the Act, a physician, after notifying a parent of the minor's decision to seek an abortion, will tell the parent that the abortion cannot take place for at least twenty-four hours. The parent thus has time to ponder the minor's predicament and the options open to her; hopefully the discussion that ensues is not a rash colloquy--or a unalterable mandate--that merely distances the minor from the family. Rather, this time may

provide[ ] the parent the opportunity to consult with his or her spouse and a family physician, ... inquire into the competency of the doctor performing the abortion, discuss the religious or moral implications of the abortion decision, and provide the daughter needed guidance and counsel in evaluating the impact of the decision on her future.

Hodgson, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2944 (Stevens, J.) (emphasis added).20 Adopting this reasoning, the Supreme Court upheld a Minnesota statute with a forty-eight hour waiting period, see id. at ----, 110 S.Ct. at 2944 (Stevens, J.) ("The 48-hour delay imposes only a minimal burden on the right of the minor to decide whether or not to terminate her pregnancy.... [T]here is no evidence that the 48-hour period itself is unreasonable or longer than appropriate for adequate consultation between parent and child."); id. at ----, 110 S.Ct. at 2969 (Kennedy, J.) ("[T]he 48-hour waiting period ... is necessary to enable notified parents to consult with their daughter or their daughter's physician."), and this decision now controls the question before us: the Georgia Act is less onerous than the Minnesota Act--it is twice as fast and, in addition, authorizes an abortion immediately if the parent previously has been notified or believes that consultation with the minor is unnecessary.

The Supreme Court has held that it is constitutionally impermissible for a state to place an absolute veto on a minor's abortion decision. See Danforth, 428 U.S. at 74, 96 S.Ct. at 2843 ("[T]he State may not impose a blanket provision ... requiring the consent of a parent or person in loco parentis as a condition for abortion of an unmarried minor during the first 12 weeks of her pregnancy.... [T]he State does not have the constitutional authority to give a third party an absolute, and possibly arbitrary, veto over the decision of the physician and his patient to terminate the patient's pregnancy, regardless of the reason for withholding the consent."); Akron I, 462 U.S. at 439, 103 S.Ct. at 2497 (citing Danforth ). A judicial bypass procedure, however, may cure a parental consent provision that otherwise would be unconstitutional, if the procedure meets the strict standards of Bellotti v. Baird. See Bellotti, 443 U.S. at 640-42, 99 S.Ct. at 3046-47; see also Akron I, 462 U.S. at 439, 103 S.Ct. at 2497 ("a State's interest in protecting immature minors will sustain a requirement of a consent substitute, either parental or judicial"); Planned Parenthood Ass'n v. Ashcroft, 462 U.S. 476, 491, 103 S. Ct. 2517, 2525, 76 L. Ed. 2d 733 (1983) (same). Under Bellotti, a pregnant minor is entitled to show the court either: "(1) that she is mature enough and well enough informed to make her abortion decision, in consultation with her physician, independently of her parents' wishes; or (2) that even if she is not able to make this decision independently, the desired abortion would be in her best interests." Bellotti, 443 U.S. at 643-44, 99 S.Ct. at 3048 (footnote omitted); see also Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2979. The procedure also must assure both the minor's anonymity and sufficient expedition of the issue and any appeal. Bellotti, 443 U.S. at 644, 99 S.Ct. at 3048 ("The proceeding ... must assure that a resolution of the issue, and any appeals that may follow, will be completed with anonymity and sufficient expedition to provide an effective opportunity for an abortion to be obtained." (emphasis added)); see also Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2979-80.

In the instant case, the district court applied the Bellotti requirements to the Georgia Act, holding that these requirements are applicable both to consent and notice statutes. The court determined that the Georgia judicial bypass procedure did not guarantee a minor sufficient anonymity and expedition in carrying out her abortion decision. Although a consent statute must contain a waiver provision meeting the Bellotti requirements, the Supreme Court has not addressed the question of whether a judicial bypass procedure necessarily must accompany a parental notification statute, or, if one is required, how it must be fashioned. See Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2978-79; see also H.L. v. Matheson, 450 U.S. 398, 413 & n. 25, 101 S. Ct. 1164, 1173 & n. 25, 67 L. Ed. 2d 388 (1981) (upholding a notice statute without a judicial bypass procedure as applied to an immature, dependent minor whose best interests would be served by notice). Given, however, that a notice statute is less onerous than a consent statute, see Matheson, 450 U.S. at 411 n. 17, 101 S. Ct. at 1172 n. 17 (notice statutes do not impose an absolute veto over the minor's abortion decision), a bypass procedure that suffices for a consent statute also must suffice for a notice statute, see Hodgson, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2971 (Kennedy, J.); Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2979. After addressing each of Planned Parenthood's challenges to the Georgia judicial bypass procedure, we determine that it meets all of the Bellotti requirements; thus the district court misapplied the constitutional standard in sustaining Planned Parenthood's challenges to this procedure.21A.

Planned Parenthood first argues that physicians will be unwilling to perform abortions even if a constructive order issues (the court having failed to act within the statutory time frame) because the Act does not require the court to confirm in writing that an abortion is authorized. The Act provides that, when a minor petitions for a waiver of the notification requirements, the court must hear her petition within three days of the filing date, and then must decide it within twenty-four hours of the hearing. Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-114(d). If the court does not abide by these time limits, the minor's petition is deemed to be granted. Id. The Act does not, however, mandate that the court automatically issue official documentation of the constructive order.

The Ohio statute at issue in Akron II contained a constructive authorization provision similar, in all relevant respects, to the Georgia provision.22 The Court upheld the Ohio statute, despite argument that its criminal penalties deterred physicians from performing abortions since the court did not always issue an affirmative order on which they could rely. The Court first noted that a state may expect its judges to follow mandated procedural requirements absent a demonstrated pattern of abuse or defiance. By providing a constructive authorization for the abortion, the Ohio legislature bestowed a supplemental safety net that ensured expedition of the bypass procedures even if courts deviated from statutorily mandated time limits; this protection went beyond the Bellotti requirements. See Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2981 ("With an abundance of caution, and concern for the minor's interests, Ohio added [a] constructive authorization provision ... to ensure expedition of the bypass procedures even if [the statutory] time limits are not met."). Accordingly, as long as a state imposes a constitutional timetable for the minor's petition to be heard and acted upon, this is sufficient to demonstrate the bypass procedure's expediency.23 There is thus no constitutional infirmity in this provision of the Georgia Act.

Planned Parenthood also argues that the Act does not sufficiently guarantee the minor's anonymity when she seeks a judicial waiver. In particular, it challenges the Act's requirements that the minor sign her full name in her petition, that her physician provide a statement confirming her pregnancy and trimester of gestation, and that the court's order contain a physical description of the minor. Without further strictures mandating anonymity, Planned Parenthood contends, the Act does not adequately protect against disclosures of the minor's identity to the public--and to court personnel.24

Although the Act does not permit the petition to be filed under the minor's initials or a pseudonym, it does mandate that all proceedings be conducted in a manner to protect the minor's anonymity, Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-114(b), (e), and that all records be sealed at the inception of the case, id. Sec. 15-11-114(d).25 In any waiver hearing, the juvenile court must redact the name of the minor throughout the record, Ga.Unif.Juv.Ct.R. 23.7, and the appellate court must keep the record confidential and then seal it upon the conclusion of the proceedings, Ga.Ct.App.R. 51(j). Such safeguards are adequate to preserve the minor's anonymity.

The district court acknowledged that the statutory sealing provision permitted the Act, standing alone, to survive constitutional scrutiny. It held, however, that the absence of a corresponding requirement for sealing in the juvenile court rules might lead the juvenile court to compromise the minor's anonymity. The court noted that while some of these implementing rules mirror certain of the Act's confidentiality requirements, see, e.g., Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-114(b) ("In no event shall the name, address, birth date, or social security number of such minor be disclosed."); Ga.Unif.Juv.Ct.R. 23.9 ("[T]he juvenile court ... shall not disclose [the minor's] name, address, birth date or social security number in any part of the record."), the sealing provision only appears in the Act.26

In the absence of evidence to the contrary, we will assume that the Georgia courts will observe the Act's mandate; to hold, as did the district court, that the Rules will confuse court employees, who will not know whether to follow them or the Act, would require us to assume that these employees will ignore the Act--and the Constitution--simply because the court rules do not explicitly provide for sealing.27 We do not believe that this assumption is proper.28

The Supreme Court has stated that although an assurance of confidentiality differs from anonymity, the distinction does not have constitutional significance--complete anonymity is not critical. To preserve confidentiality, it is not necessary to allow the use of a pseudonym or a minor's initials on the petition; rather, the state must take reasonable steps to prevent the public from learning of the minor's identity. The fact that some public officials have access to the minor's court record does not compromise the record's confidentiality, nor does it mean that they will make unauthorized disclosures of it. See Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2979-80; see also Jacksonville Clergy Consultation Serv. v. Martinez, 707 F. Supp. 1301, 1303 (M.D.Fla.1989). The Georgia provision thus conforms to the constitutional requirements.

Planned Parenthood also argues that the Uniform Juvenile Court Rules, by permitting an intake officer to screen and possibly divert the minor's petition, impose an impermissible third-party veto over a minor's abortion decision.29 Uniform Juvenile Court Rule 4.1 provides that for all juvenile court proceedings an intake officer must make a preliminary determination of whether a petition shall be filed:

If the allegations appear to be legally sufficient for the filing of a petition, and it further appears that judicial action is in the best interest of the public and the child within guidelines established by the court, the intake officer may endorse a petition. The intake officer may elect to informally adjust, divert, or recommend dismissing the case, within guidelines established by the court.

If the intake officer makes a final determination as to whether a minor's legally sufficient petition may be filed (or should be dismissed or diverted), then he is acting as a judge--he is deciding whether the minor must comply with the notice requirements. Yet the standard the officer applies, "best interest of the public and the child," is not the constitutionally mandated one and, assuming the intake officer adopted this interpretation in a particular case, the Act would be unconstitutional as applied.

If, on the other hand, the intake officer is merely making a recommendation, which the court can accept or reject, then the court is still the ultimate arbiter of the petition. Thus, when the Uniform Juvenile Court Rules provide that the intake officer may merely recommend the dismissal of the case, they leave the judge--not the intake officer--in control of the proceedings. The intake officer, in addition to recommending dismissal, may "informally adjust [or] divert" the minor's petition if this is in the best interests of the minor and the public. Even if we interpreted this language to allow the officer to do more than suggest minor adjustments in the petition, for the court's convenience, or to temporarily divert the petition while such changes are made, the officer's determination is merely "preliminary." Ga.Unif.Juv.Ct.R. 4.1. Presumably, the judge has the final say on whether the petition may proceed.30 Additionally, we will not assume, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, that Georgia's intake officers would attempt to use this language to prevent minors from filing petitions that are legally sufficient under the Act--or to slow the processing of such petitions. The best interests of the public and the minor, as the Supreme Court holds, mandate that she be allowed to avoid parental notification if she meets the Bellotti criteria--that she be accorded her constitutional rights. A more generous interpretation of the rule--and an interpretation that comports with the Constitution--is that the intake officer should assist a minor in filing a legally sufficient petition so that the court can determine whether a waiver should be granted.31 Accordingly, we believe that this rule promotes the proper functioning of the Georgia bypass procedure.

Planned Parenthood also contends that the mandatory appointment of a guardian ad litem, see id. R. 23.2, raises the prospect that the guardian ad litem would oppose the minor's petition based on his own view of the minor's best interests. We are not willing to assume, however, in a facial challenge to the statute, that a court-appointed guardian will assume this role. A guardian ad litem is appointed "to protect the interests of the minor" in a particular matter before the court. See id. In most litigation that is conducted by a guardian ad litem on a minor's behalf, the guardian ad litem, as a part of his duties, must determine whether it is in the minor's best interest to continue, settle, or dismiss the litigation. He makes this determination based upon the likelihood of the action's success and the costs that will be incurred to achieve it. In a minor's action against a tortfeasor, for example, the guardian ad litem may determine that it is in the best interests of the minor to settle; he then is able to compromise the claim, provided he obtains the court's permission. See, e.g., Saliba v. Saliba, 202 Ga. 279, 42 S.E.2d 748, 752 (1947) (guardian has authority to compromise or settle the minor's claim by leave of the court).32 When a minor seeks a waiver of a parental notice statute, on the other hand, the guardian ad litem faces an exceptional situation. Even if the guardian ad litem conducts a weighing of the costs and benefits of proceeding with the petition, he always will conclude that it is in the minor's best interest to proceed with the petition. To start with, the costs of the bypass procedure are small: the petition already has been filed33 and the hearing and appeals process proceeds expeditiously with appointed counsel and no filing fees, see Ga.Code Ann. Sec. 15-11-114(a), (f); and the advantages of proceeding are weighty: the minor's constitutional liberty interest, her right to make her own abortion decision, is preserved. Additionally, the waiver petition, in contrast to the tort claim, asks the court what is in the best interests of the minor. If the guardian ad litem answers this question, he usurps the court's role and thereby defeats the minor's constitutional rights. We do not believe that this would be consistent with his legislatively mandated duty "to protect the interests of the minor." The Supreme Court has determined that a minor always should be entitled to decide whether she wishes to have an abortion if she is mature, see Ashcroft, 462 U.S. at 490-91, 103 S.Ct. at 2525; Bellotti, 443 U.S. at 643, 99 S.Ct. at 3048, and in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we will presume that guardians ad litem will act to preserve this right--basing their decisions on the premise that allowing the minor's petition to proceed is, indeed, in her best interest.

We also note that, in enacting this Rule, the Georgia legislature appears to have been motivated by a concern for minors who are unacquainted with the judicial bypass procedure or who would be unable to enforce its mandates34--a guardian ad litem who is familiar with the conduct of the waiver hearing and appeal offers invaluable assistance to a pregnant minor. We thus believe that the Georgia provision will promote rather than burden the minor's abortion decision.35

Finally, Planned Parenthood argues that the Georgia judicial bypass procedure is not sufficiently expeditious, noting that the Act permits a delay of nineteen days or more for a hearing on the petition and the conclusion of the appellate process.36

The Bellotti plurality stated that courts must conduct a bypass procedure with sufficient expedition to allow the minor an effective opportunity to obtain an abortion. See Bellotti, 443 U.S. at 644, 99 S.Ct. at 3048. When, however, as here, an appellant is challenging the facial validity of a statute, he must show that "no set of circumstances exists under which the Act would be valid." Akron II, --- U.S. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2980-81 (quoting Webster v. Reproductive Health Servs., 492 U.S. 490, 524, 109 S. Ct. 3040, 3060 (1989) (O'Connor, J., concurring)). Thus, the mere possibility that a court will utilize all the time allotted to it by the legislature, and thereby extend the petition procedure to nineteen days, would be insufficient to invalidate the statute on its face. See Id. at ----, 110 S. Ct. at 2981 ("[U]nder our precedents, the mere possibility that the procedure may require up to twenty-two days in a rare case is plainly insufficient to invalidate the statute on its face."). In addition, we note that the Ashcroft Court upheld a Missouri statute that contained a bypass procedure requiring seventeen calendar days plus a sufficient time for deliberation and decision-making at both the trial and appellate levels. See Ashcroft, 462 U.S. at 477 n. 4, 491 n. 16, 103 S. Ct. at 2519 n. 4, 2525 n. 16. We thus believe that the Georgia procedure meets the constitutional requirements.

We hold that the Georgia Parental Notification Act's requirements, taken together, do not unduly burden a minor's abortion decision. Georgia has provided a narrowly tailored means to ensure that a minor's decision is voluntary and intelligent. The Act provides the minor and physician with expeditious and reliable means to notify the parents--and to verify that notification has taken place--and a reasonable time for consultation. If the minor is mature or if notification would not be in her best interests, she may petition the court to waive the notice requirement in proceedings that are both expeditious and confidential. The district court abused its discretion by entering a preliminary injunction. The order granting the injunction is accordingly VACATED; Georgia may implement the Act.

IT IS SO ORDERED.