SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Supreme Court has upheld an injunction blocking the near-total abortion ban from going into effect.
Now, a powerful Utah legislator is calling for a special session to restrict abortion to six weeks, instead of the 18 weeks it is currently.
Thursday's decision in Planned Parenthood v. Utah means that Utah's "trigger law" banning abortions (except in cases of rape, incest or health of the mother) will remain on hold. It was a 4-1 decision with Associate Chief Justice John Pearce and Justices Jill Pohlman, Paige Petersen and Diana Hagan in the majority. Chief Justice Matthew Durrant dissented.
"PPAU raises serious issues concerning SB 174’s constitutionality—and serious issues going to the merits is what Utah Rule of Civil Procedure 65A required when the district court evaluated the motion for a preliminary injunction," Associate Chief Justice John Pearce wrote in the majority opinion. "The district court did not abuse its discretion when it reviewed the evidence the parties presented and concluded that PPAU would suffer irreparable harm if the law were not enjoined, that the balance of harms tips in favor of an injunction, and that an injunction would not be adverse to the public interest. We affirm the district court and allow the preliminary injunction to remain in place while PPAU litigates its claims."
In his dissent, Chief Justice Durrant focused standing — whether Planned Parenthood Association of Utah had the legal right to even bring a lawsuit.
"The district court concluded that PPAU had standing to assert these claims based on the concept of public-interest standing... The majority now affirms that decision on different grounds, holding that PPAU may assert these claims based on the concept of third-party standing... I respectfully disagree with both conclusions," he wrote.
The anti-abortion "trigger law" was passed in 2020, but went into effect only when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. Planned Parenthood sued over that law, and a lower court judge issued the injunction, halting it from going into effect. That meant as a result of the Utah Supreme Court's ruling, abortion remains legal up until 18 weeks of a pregnancy.
"We are very proud of this decision and thankful the Supreme Court made the decision it did," Kathryn Boyd, the CEO of Planned Parenthood of Utah, said in an interview with FOX 13 News. "What this means for our patients is they can continue to access the care that they deserve. We are here. We will not stop. We are here to continue to provide this care for our patients."
Sen. Dan McCay, R-Riverton, the sponsor of the trigger law, expressed disappointment in the ruling.
"That is the one thing that is guaranteed from the injunction today is that the unborn, the innocent will lose their lives today because of these actions," he told reporters.
Regardless of the Court's decision, Planned Parenthood's legal challenge will continue in the lower court. It is expected regardless of the outcome, the case will return once again to the Utah Supreme Court to decide the constitutionality of the trigger law.
Governor Spencer Cox also signaled his displeasure with the Court's ruling.
"We are disappointed by the Supreme Court’s ruling that will further delay implementation of laws designed to protect some of the most vulnerable members of our state. We are hopeful that this decision will be a temporary setback and the laws will take effect following resolution of the case. We are grateful for the state’s current restriction on abortions after 18 weeks. Regardless of this outcome, our administration will continue to fight for all Utahns, including the unborn," his office said in a statement to FOX 13 News.
At a news conference, Sen. McCay told reporters that he would now seek a special session of the Utah State Legislature to change Utah's abortion laws to allow them up to six weeks, like other states have done. That had support from anti-abortion advocates.
"If a six week ban will save a few more babies? We are certainly in support of that," said Mary Taylor, the president of Pro-Life Utah.
Planned Parenthood said it would see what the legislature does and respond accordingly. Senate Minority Leader Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, said her caucus would oppose any special session.
"We want to make sure people get access to reproductive health," she told FOX 13 News on Thursday. "The full ban? It’s bad public policy."
Under a constitutional amendment voters approved in 2018, the legislature can call itself into special session for emergencies like fiscal crisis, war, or a natural disaster. Otherwise, the governor must be involved and a two-thirds majority of the legislature will have to vote to convene a special session.
In a statement, House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, and Senate President J. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, criticized the ruling.
"The Utah Legislature thoughtfully acted to ensure the state had a strong policy in place to protect both the unborn and the life of the mother. We are deeply disappointed by the Utah Supreme Court’s ruling today preventing our state’s abortion law from taking effect more than two years after the Dobbs decision," they said. "Through this ruling, the Utah Supreme Court is undermining the constitutional authority of the Legislature to enact laws as elected representatives of the people of Utah."
This is the second major ruling from the Utah Supreme Court that has aggravated Republican leadership on Utah's Capitol Hill. They blasted a ruling a few weeks ago from the state's top court on redistricting and citizen ballot initiatives. While there have been rumblings about laws that could directly impact the Utah Supreme Court, Sen. McCay offered a vigorous defense of the separation of powers between the legislative, judicial and executive branches.
"I would argue their reactions, my reactions, our reactions, the court’s reactions, the governor’s reactions? This is the way it was all meant to be. The balances of the legislative, judicial and executive branches? This is what the forefathers came up with. We mirrored it in Utah and it’s an awesome part of our process. Is it painful? Yes," Sen. McCay told reporters. "This is the way it’s always been and if I have anything to say about it? This is the way it will always be."
House Minority Leader Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City, praised the Utah Supreme Court's decision but urged Utahns to fight laws like abortion bans at the ballot box in November.
"The people of Utah need to let their elected officials know where they stand, and that’s at the ballot box," she told FOX 13 News. "If people don’t like the laws that are happening up here? They need to get out there and they need to vote."
Read the Court's opinion here:
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