Landmark Supreme Court ruling says tattooing by nondoctors is legal

A landmark ruling by the Supreme Court on Thursday stated that tattoo procedures performed by nonmedical practitioners do not constitute illegal medical practice, overturning a 34-year-old legal precedent that had effectively criminalized tattooing by nondoctors.

The Supreme Court’s full bench unanimously overturned lower court rulings that had fined two tattoo artists for violating the Medical Service Act, sending the cases back to lower courts with suggestions to acquit them.

“The act of tatto ...