SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Supreme Court will issue a highly-anticipated ruling over the state's near-total abortion ban, FOX 13 News has confirmed.
The Court published notice that its opinion in Planned Parenthood v. Utah will be issued on Thursday. The justices will decide whether or not to uphold an injunction issued by a lower court. The injunction blocks Utah's ban on abortions (except in cases of rape, incest or health of the mother) from being enforced. Currently, abortion remains legal in Utah up to 18 weeks.
The abortion "trigger law" was passed in 2020, but went into effect when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. Planned Parenthood sued over the law and a lower court judge issued the injunction.
The state's top court could uphold the injunction, keeping abortion legal in Utah up to 18 weeks of pregnancy. The justices could also strike down the injunction, which means the ban goes into effect. The Court also has the option of striking down the injunction, but setting a timeline for when the ban would go into effect.
Regardless of the ruling, Planned Parenthood's lawsuit challenging the legality of the near-total abortion ban would continue in a lower court.
