Utah Court Rules – Approved – <p>The Supreme Court or Judicial Council has approved and adopted the following rules, which rules are effective on the date indicated. To view the newly adopted rules, click on any rule number.</p><p>Under circumstances described in CJA Rules 2-205 or 11-105, certain rules may have been adopted prior to a public comment period. The public is provided the opportunity to provide comment on those rules during the 45 days following the adoption of any such rule. To review and comment, click on the “LINKS” tab directly below. Then click on “Proposed Rule Amendments Published for Comment” to be taken to the page where links to rules subject to public comment are located.</p>

Posted: February 7, 2023

Rules of Criminal Procedure – Effective February 1, 2023

URCrP002. Time. Amend. The Rule is amended to adjust how time is computed following the adoption of Juneteenth as a state holiday.

Supreme Court Order

Posted: February 2, 2023

Rules of Civil Procedure – Effective May 1, 2023

URCP007. Pleadings allowed; motions, memoranda, hearings, orders. (AMEND). The first change to subparagraph (l)(1) adds motions for Rule 16 pretrial conferences to the list of motions the court may act upon without waiting for a response. The second change removes portions of the rule and adds subparagraph (q) to the end of the rule to outline page limits and word limits for filings. This brings the rule in line with the Utah Local Federal rules, the Utah Rules of Appellate Procedure, and the Federal Courts of Appeal which use page and word limits. Parties may use the page or word limits.

URCP007A. Motions to enforce order and for sanctions. (AMEND). The change to subparagraph (h) clarifies confusion that may arise in reading rule 109 where an injunction is entered by the court in domestic actions and whether a party may file a motion to enforce an injunction entered by the court. The same change was made to Rule 7B.

URCP007B. Motion to enforce order and for sanctions in domestic law matters. (AMEND). The change to subparagraph (h) clarifies confusion that may arise in reading rule 109 where an injunction is entered by the court in domestic actions and whether a party may file a motion to enforce an injunction entered by the court. The same change was made to Rule 7A.

Supreme Court Order

Posted: January 23, 2023

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Effective January 5, 2023

USB14-0802. Authorization to practice law. Amend.

The amendments to Rule 14-802(c)(1)(C) and (c)(1)(F) give Licensed Paralegal Practitioners (LPPs) the ability to modify the court forms that are relevant to their areas of practice. These amendments will give LPPs much needed flexibility to complete services for their clients while still working within the scopes of practice established by the Supreme Court.

Rule 14-802 was initially drafted with the intention of both defining the scope of practice for LPPs and ensuring the availability, accuracy, and effect of that scope of practice through forms that have been vetted and approved by the Judicial Council’s Standing Committee on Court Forms.

While the intent of this rule was to guide LPPs, attorneys, and the public through a new and uncharted program that authorized the limited practice of law by non-attorneys, it resulted in unanticipated results: LPPs’ effectiveness has been artificially limited, with negative results for their clients in the form of reduced cost savings and the inability to tailor pleadings to clients’ individual circumstances. The amendments to subparagraphs (c)(1)(C) and (c)(1)(F) seek to remedy that.

The amendments to Rule 14-802(c)(1)(H), meanwhile, establish that LPPs may negotiate on their client’s behalf for purposes of settlement. While these amendments are intended to be broadly applicable to all of the LPP practice areas, the immediate result is that LPPs will be able to serve unrepresented litigants on the courts’ pro se calendars. The subparagraph (c)(1)(H) amendments are expedited under UCJA Rule 11-105(5).

Supreme Court Order for (c)(1)(C) and (c)(1)(F)

Supreme Court Order for (c)(1)(H)

Posted: January 17, 2023

Code of Judicial Administration – Effective May 1, 2023

CJA03-0104. Presiding judges (AMEND). Requires presiding judges to notify the appropriate state level administrator when a judge fails to submit a required case under advisement statement. If a judge fails to submit a required statement for two consecutive months, the state level administrator must notify the Management Committee.

Judicial Council Order

Posted: December 20, 2022

Code of Judicial Administration – Effective December 19, 2022

Amendments clarify that attorneys and licensed paralegal practitioners must file cases electronically and allow self-represented litigants to file by email.

CJA04-0503. Mandatory electronic filing in civil and probate cases (AMEND)

CJA04-0603. Mandatory electronic filing in criminal cases (AMEND)

CJA04-0801. Filing small claims cases (AMEND)

CJA04-0901. Mandatory electronic filing in juvenile court (AMEND)

CJA09-0302. Mandatory electronic filing in justice court (AMEND)

Judicial Council Order

Posted: December 12, 2022

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Effective December 9, 2022

USB14-0701. Definitions. Amended as of December 9, 2022, pursuant to UCJA Rule 11-105(5). The amendments add as a defined term “UBE Transfer Applicant.”

USB14-0809. Practice Pending Admission. Amended as of December 9, 2022, pursuant to UCJA Rule 11-105(5).The amendments add UBE Transfer Applicants to the list of applicants that may practice while their admissions application is pending.

Supreme Court Order

Posted: November 21, 2022

Code of Judicial Administration – Effective May 1, 2023

Appendix B. Justice Court Standards for Recertification (AMEND). Code of Judicial Administration Rule 9-108 requires that justice court standards be reviewed and updated every two years. The amendments streamline the appendix, provide clarity, and incorporate recent statutory amendments.

CJA01-0201. Judicial Council Membership – Election (AMEND)

CJA01-0302. Board of Judges – Membership – Officers – Secretariat (AMEND)

Clarifies that Council members may serve as non-voting members of a trial court board and continues to allow an exception for the appellate courts. Reflects the Judicial Council’s membership exception for the Standing Committee on Judicial Fairness and Accountability set forth in rule 1-205(1)(C).

CJA04-0202.04. Request to access a record associated with a case; request to classify a record associated with a case (AMEND). Clarifies that requesters denied access to non-public court records associated with a case that they are not authorized to access under rule 4-202.03 must file a motion or petition to access the record.

Judicial Council Order

Posted: November 21, 2022

Code of Judicial Administration – Effective January 1, 2023

CJA01-0204. Executive committees (AMEND). Creates court-level core teams and subcommittees of Policy, Planning, and Technology to assist the Committee in accomplishing its new technology responsibilities.

CJA04-0202.08. Fees for records, information, and services (AMEND). Allows the court to charge requesters for the first 15 minutes of personnel time. Changes “impecunious” to “indigent.” Indigent requesters are limited to one free copy of each record, after which they would be required to pay the standard rates. Exceptions can be made by the State Court Administrator. Removes references to outdated technology.

Judicial Council Order

Posted: November 21, 2022

Code of Judicial Administration – Effective November 21, 2022

CJA04-0202.02. Records classification (AMEND). Records previously designated as sealed by another court remain sealed in the record on appeal. Records may be unsealed by court order.

Judicial Council Order

Posted: November 8, 2022

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Effective November 7, 2022

USB14-0705.Admission by motion. Amended as of November 7, 2022, pursuant to UCJA Rule 11-105(5). The amendments restore reciprocity language to the rule.

Since the August 1, 2022 amendments, the Utah State Bar’s Office of Admissions has fielded several inquiries about whether an attorney who is primarily licensed and practicing in a non-reciprocal jurisdiction would now be eligible for admission by motion. These questions appear to arise from the deletion of a reciprocity provision in Rule 14-705. Removing reciprocity requirements was never the intention behind the August amendments. Rather, the intention was to simply recognize that the pandemic created opportunities for remote work. As such, these amendments clarify that a reciprocal admission applicant must have been engaged in the Full-time Practice of Law in the reciprocal jurisdiction, whether remotely or in-person, during the relevant time period.

Supreme Court Order