Utah Supreme Court Justice Diana Hagen resigned Friday amid mounting pressure from Republican state leaders and an escalating investigation into allegations of an affair with an attorney connected to a major redistricting lawsuit.
Hagen submitted her resignation to Gov. Spencer Cox (R-UT), ending her tenure on the state’s highest court less than four years after her appointment.
In her resignation letter, Hagen denied wrongdoing but said the controversy surrounding her personal life and recent divorce had become too damaging for her family and for the judiciary’s ability to function independently.
“I would love nothing more than to continue serving the people of Utah,” Hagen wrote, according to published excerpts from the letter. She said continuing in the role would require sacrificing the “privacy and well-being” of loved ones.
Cox and Utah Chief Justice Matthew Durrant, as well as other GOP leaders, said they “are committed to working together on potential reforms to the Judicial Conduct Commission — ensuring it upholds the highest standards of accountability and earns the confidence of the people of Utah.”
The resignation follows weeks of scrutiny tied to allegations that Hagen had an inappropriate relationship with attorney David Reymann, who represented plaintiffs challenging Utah’s congressional map in a redistricting case.
Hagen had previously acknowledged a friendship with Reymann while her marriage was deteriorating in 2025 and recused herself from cases involving him. Her ex-husband accused her of inappropriately texting Reymann.
The allegations resurfaced after state Republican leaders, including Cox, called for an independent investigation into how the Judicial Conduct Commission handled earlier complaints against Hagen.
State leaders argued the commission’s review lacked transparency and failed to fully address concerns about potential conflicts of interest.
The case at the center of the controversy was a redistricting case concerning Proposition 4, a 2018 ballot measure that required congressional districts to be redrawn by an independent commission. Reymann represented the anti-redistricting plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
Hagen’s departure creates a vacancy on the five-member court and gives Cox another opportunity to shape Utah’s judiciary.