Utah Supreme Court cancels oral arguments in lawsuit challenging state’s abortion ban

People attend an abortion-rights protest at the Utah State Capitol, Friday, June 24, 2022, in Salt Lake City | Photo by Rick Bowmer, The Associated Press, St. George News

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Supreme Court has canceled scheduled oral arguments in the high-profile lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood against the state’s near-total abortion ban.

In a recent court order obtained by KSL.com, Associate Chief Justice John A. Pearce canceled a round of oral arguments scheduled for May 10, instead asking lawyers for Planned Parenthood and the state to revisit a preliminary injunction that is blocking the state’s trigger abortion ban from taking full effect.

The order comes after the Utah Legislature voted to change court rules to retroactively narrow the scope of when a judge can issue a preliminary injunction. Utah’s law — which bans all elective abortions with few exceptions — is currently on hold while the courts decide whether it’s constitutional.

Abortion is still legal in the state through 18 weeks of pregnancy, although a recent law would effectively close elective abortion clinics after May 2. Planned Parenthood Association of Utah has also challenged the legality of that law.

Read the full story here: KSL News.

Written by BRIDGER BEAL-CVETKO, KSL.com.

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