On Aug. 8, the Utah Supreme Court heard arguments for and against lifting the preliminary injunction on the state’s abortion “trigger” law, which took effect immediately after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade precedent in June 2022.
Utah’s trigger law bans all elective abortions except in cases of rape, incest or risk to the mother’s health. Last year, an injunction from Utah’s Third District Court barred its execution, which was the result of a lawsuit issued by the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah (PPAU) in July 2022.
During the hearing at the Matheson Courthouse, Planned Parenthood argued in favor of extending the injunction, while the state of Utah argued that it should be lifted.
“That injunction is currently shielding the women and families of Utah from grave harm to their health and their rights,” Camila Vega, attorney for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, told the justices.
Taylor Meehan, attorney for the state of Utah, focused her argument on how the injunction has halted the trigger law from taking effect. “We are hearing a preliminary injunction posture, and so the particular question is whether Planned Parenthood is entitled to enjoin the state’s law,” Meehan told the justices.
Outside the courtroom, parties in favor and against the injunction discussed their views. Sen. Daniel McCay, R-Riverton, continued to stand by the trigger law, which he sponsored during the 2020 General Session.
“We want to protect life and … build a law that prohibits elective abortion and does everything we can [to] protect women,” the senator said.
Kathryn Boyd, president and CEO of PPAU, was steadfast in the organization’s commitment to ensuring access to reproductive health care.
“I want to make one thing clear — abortion is healthcare,” Boyd said. “Our mission is to empower Utahns of all ages to make informed choices about their reproductive health, to ensure our patients [have] access to affordable, quality healthcare, and [to] protect their rights to obtain that care.”
For Vega, a key component of the current case lies in the method of constitutional analysis that the courts decide to take. The Utah justices did not indicate when they would announce their decision to either retain the lower court’s hold on abortion law or intervene.
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, states across the country have faced similar legal challenges over abortion. Earlier this year in March, for example, the North Dakota Supreme Court ruled that the state’s abortion ban would remain blocked while a lawsuit over its constitutionality proceeds.
Abortions up to 18 weeks of pregnancy remain legal in Utah while the injunction remains in place.
