CHIEF JUSTICE ISSUES UPDATED PANDEMIC ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER

Salt Lake City, UT— Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice Matthew B. Durrant has issued an updated Administrative Order. The order offers further direction on warrants, bench trials, and eviction cases during the pandemic.

The Utah Courts remain open and available to the public while balancing the health and safety of court patrons, court staff, and judges. Toward that goal, the Utah Judicial Council has established three levels of court operations (Red, Yellow, Green), based on safety recommendations established by the Centers for Disease Control and the Utah Department of Health. While most hearings are being conducted remotely, some are now in-person, depending on a court’s risk level. Since March, courts have conducted over 140,000 remote proceedings on more than 63,000 District Court cases. Courts approved for in-person hearings and jury trials under the Yellow Phase currently include those in: Box Elder, Rich, Davis, Juab, Millard, Beaver, Iron, Piute, Sevier, Emery, Daggett, and Uintah. Courts in Salt Lake, Summit, Utah, Washington, Garfield, Kane, Sanpete, Wayne, Carbon, Grand, and San Juan counties have been approved to move from Red to Yellow when COVID case numbers decrease in those counties. The COVID Alerts and Information page contains more information.

Like many organizations forced to rethink ways in which business is done due to COVID-19, the Utah Courts recognize there have been many changes and challenges. Some changes, such as remote hearings, have benefited the public and provided greater transparency. While some of the challenges have created frustration at times, the Utah Courts are continuously working through them and expect those efforts to make our judiciary more agile and efficient over time.

Click here for the Oct. 2, 2020 Administrative Order:

https://legacy.utcourts.gov/alerts/docs/20201002%20-%20Amended%20Pandemic%20Administrative%20Order.pdf

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