Utah Supreme Court Expanded and Reshaped Amid Legislative-Judicial Tensions

In 2026, Utah's Supreme Court underwent significant structural and personnel changes amid tension between the state's branches of government. On March 6, Governor Spencer Cox signed SB134, which expanded the Utah Supreme Court from five to seven justices and added judgeships to the Court of Appeals and several district courts; the bill passed and was signed within nine working days, largely along party lines. Justice Diana Hagen resigned on May 8 amid an investigation into alleged misconduct involving an improper relationship with an attorney who had argued cases before the court, with her resignation coming shortly after Cox signed legislation creating a new three-judge panel structure described as a 'constitutional court' to hear challenges to state laws. Chief Justice Matthew Durrant also announced his retirement, though the timing relative to other events is not fully specified across reports. On June 2, Cox appointed two new justices, Dent and Jorgensen, to fill vacancies on the expanded court. Separately, in early May, Cox publicly defended a Republican-led effort to remove two state Supreme Court justices through an upcoming retention election, characterizing it as a legitimate check on judicial authority following a 2024 court ruling that limited legislative power over citizen initiatives and redistricting. Pending before the reconstituted court are significant cases, including a challenge to the state's abortion ban and a legal challenge to the newly created three-judge panel structure itself. The exact relationship between the court expansion, Hagen's resignation, and the retention-election push remains unclear from available reporting, as does whether the retention election has occurred or its outcome. It is also unresolved how the court's new composition, following the appointments of Dent and Jorgensen, may affect pending litigation over abortion rights, redistricting, and the constitutionality of the panel structure created under the new law.