A justice from the Utah Supreme Court has stepped down in the midst of an investigation concerning a purported relationship with a lawyer involved in a redistricting case.
Justice Diana Hagen alluded to the investigation and its emotional impact on her family in her resignation letter addressed to Governor Spencer Cox, as reported by Fox News Digital.
“Throughout my 26 years of public service, I have been acutely aware of the sacrifices it demands,” Hagen expressed. “I’ve embraced these sacrifices to hold a role entrusted with upholding the law and safeguarding the constitutional rights of Utah’s citizens.”
She further noted, “Public officials are subject to higher standards, facing intense scrutiny and reduced privacy. However, my family and friends did not choose this path and should not endure the exposure of personal matters, especially the distressing dissolution of my three-decade-long marriage.”
The resignation took immediate effect, according to a representative from Utah’s Administrative Office of the Courts.
Allegations surfaced from Hagen’s ex-husband, accusing her of exchanging “inappropriate” texts with a lawyer who contested a Republican-favored redistricting map that preserved Utah’s four congressional seats.
David Reymann, who worked on behalf of progressive voting rights groups in the case, was named as the lawyer in a complaint that an attorney for Hagen’s husband submitted to Chief Justice Matthew Durrant and the Judicial Conduct Commission, according to local outlet KSL.
Hagen and Reymann previously denied the allegations.
The Judicial Conduct Commission—described on its website as an independent body comprising several state lawmakers, judges, and members of the public—conducted a preliminary investigation based on the complaint and chose not to pursue the matter further, KSL reported.
A statement issued by the Utah Supreme Court on behalf of Hagen in April said she took “prompt, prudent, and transparent steps” in response to the allegations by her ex-husband.
“My last involvement in the redistricting case was October 2024,” Hagen said. “I voluntarily recused myself from all cases involving Mr. Reymann in May 2025, and my recusal was reflected in the Court’s September 15, 2025, opinion in League of Women Voters.”
In her resignation letter, Hagen stated that she would love to continue serving on the bench.
“But I cannot do so without sacrificing the privacy and well-being of those I care about and the effective functioning and independence of Utah’s judiciary,” she wrote.
Cox will be tasked with naming Hagen’s replacement. Fox News Digital has reached out to the governor’s office.
Fox News Digital’s Ashley Oliver contributed to this report.
