Enforcement of Utah’s near-total abortion ban will remain on hold as Planned Parenthood Associates of Utah’s (PPAU) lawsuit challenging the law moves forward, the state’s Supreme Court ruled on Aug. 1.
The law bars all abortions in the state, except in cases involving rape, incest, a fatal fetal anomaly, or when the mother’s life is in danger. The law also classifies the performance of an unlawful abortion as a felony, punishable by fines and up to 15 years in prison.
The court’s decision means that, at least for the time being, abortion will remain legal in Utah until 18 weeks of pregnancy.
“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,” Pearce wrote.
Celebrating the court’s decision, PPAU President and CEO Kathryn Boyd said it means the organization’s patients “can continue to come to us, their trusted health care providers, to access abortion and other essential reproductive services right here in Utah.”
Utah’s state House Speaker Mike Schultz and Senate President J. Stuart Adams said they were “deeply disappointed” by the ruling.
“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.”
Lawmakers passed the law in 2020 in anticipation of a forthcoming reversal of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that established a national right to abortion.
In 2022, the top court overturned Roe, allowing Utah’s ban to take effect. But Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah promptly sued, challenging its constitutionality.
The case will now continue in the district court, which Utah Gov. Spencer Cox hopes will uphold the law.
