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Posted: February 17, 2023

Rules of Civil Procedure – Comment Period Closed April 3, 2023

URCP010. Form of pleadings and other papers. Amend. The Committee proposes to amend subparagraph (d) of this rule to modify the top margin from 1½ inches to 1 inch, like the right, left, and bottom margins. The reason for the wider margin at the top was to allow filing of paper copies in a folder with top hole punches. With electronic filing, this extra space at the top is no longer needed.

URCP100A. Case Management of Domestic Relations Actions. Amend. The Committee proposes to amend subparagraph (a) to exempt actions initiated by the Office of Recovery Services from this Rule. ORS reports that because its actions usually require service on more than one party, it often happens that one of them will be served and file an answer, prompting a case management conference to be set. The setting will often be premature because the other party has not yet been served or has not yet responded. In other cases a case management conference is unnecessary because the responding parties agree with ORS’s pleading.

Posted: February 7, 2023

Rules of Criminal Procedure – Comment Period Closed March 24, 2023

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

Posted: February 6, 2023

Rules of Criminal Procedure – Comment Period Closed March 23, 2023

URCrP008. Appointment of counsel. Amend. The Supreme Court has requested an additional round of public comment to Rule 8. The current proposal changes the process of securing a waiver of the right to counsel and the appointment of counsel in capital cases.

Posted: January 23, 2023

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Comment Period Closed March 9, 2023

USB14-0802. Authorization to practice law. Amend. The amendments to Rule 14-802(c)(1)(H), which were expedited under UCJA Rule 11-105(5), establish that Licensed Paralegal Practitioners (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.

Posted: January 19, 2023

Rules of Civil Procedure – Comment Period Closed March 5, 2023

URCP004. Process. AMEND. The Committee proposes an amendment to subparagraph (d)(1)(D), similar to the amendment proposed by Judge Orme in Jordan Credit Union v. Sullivan, 2022 UT App 120, ¶ 18 (Orme, J., concurring), in order to allow for personal service of process on an incarcerated person.

URCP007. Pleadings allowed; motions, memoranda, hearings, orders. AMEND. The Committee proposes adding two motions to the subparagraph (l)(1) list of motions that a court may decide without awaiting a response. First, the Committee proposes adding a motion to strike a document filed by a vexatious litigant in violation of Rule 83(d). Where a vexatious litigant makes an improper filing, it is not presently clear whether an opposing party must proceed under Rule 7A’s procedures for enforcing the vexatious litigant order. Requiring the opposing party to do so would involve full briefing and considerable delay, contrary to the purpose of filing restrictions imposed under Rule 83. Second, the Committee proposes adding a motion to appear remotely.

URCP083. Vexatious Litigants. AMEND. The Committee proposes amending subparagraphs (b)(4) and (d)(1) to allow vexatious litigants to file a notice of appeal without first getting approval from the trial judge. Where a trial court imposes filing restrictions on a vexatious litigant, sometimes court clerks have refused attempts by the litigant to file a notice of appeal. This can create uncertainty in some cases as to whether an appellate court has jurisdiction over an appeal because the documentary evidence of a timely appeal is missing. The amendments would make it clear that the trial court may not erect barriers to the filing of a notice of appeal. The Committee also proposes amending subparagraphs (b)(4), (b)(5), and (d)(1) to change “leave of the court” to “permission of the court” to make the language more understandable to self-represented litigants.

Posted: January 18, 2023

Rules of Juvenile Procedure – Comment Period Closed March 4, 2023

URJP018. Summons; service of process; notice. Amend. The proposed amendments to Rule 18 include: (1) adding language that requires a bilingual notice in abuse, neglect, dependency, and termination of parental rights cases; (2) adding a subsection to 18(a)(2) to include termination of parental rights cases; and, (3) replacing the language “shall” with “must,” “will,” or “is” to conform with the Utah Supreme Court stylistic guidelines.

Posted: January 17, 2023

Code of Judicial Administration – Comment Period Closes March 3, 2023

CJA03-0403. Judicial branch education (AMEND). Proposed amendments require judicial officers and court employees to complete annual training on harassment and abusive conduct, ethics, inclusion, and elimination of bias. Other amendments are intended to streamline the rule and reflect current onboarding and orientation practices.

Posted: December 20, 2022

Code of Judicial Administration – Comment Period Closed February 3, 2023

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)

Posted: December 15, 2022

Rules of Appellate Procedure – Comment Period Closed January 29, 2023

URAP004. Appeal as of right: when taken. The Committee had previously sent the rule out for comment in regards to the following proposed changes: (1) add to the rule the standard governing motion to reinstate the time for appeal; (2) restructure the section to be consistent with subsection 4(g) (addressing reinstating the right to appeal in civil cases); (3) included a one-year deadline from discovery of facts giving rise to the claim; and (4) clean up language for clarity and consistency. The Committee is proposing sending out for public comment; (1) new restructured language in regards to the one-year timeframe; and (2) clarifying what will be deemed the entry date for an order that is filed on the weekend or on a legal holiday.

URAP005. Discretionary appeals from interlocutory orders. The Committee proposes amending Rule 5 to: (1) clarify what will be deemed the entry date for an order that is filed on the weekend or on a legal holiday; and (2) clean up language for clarity and consistency.

URAP011. The record on appeal. The Committee proposes amending Rule 11 to: (1) add a requirement that parties include the position of all other parties when filing a motion; and (2) change the reference to Rule 11(e)(1) to (c)(1).

URAP022. Computation and enlargement of time. The Committee proposes amending Rule 22 to: (1) clarify what will be deemed the entry date for an order that is filed on the weekend or on a legal holiday; (2) clarify “legal holiday” and provide a web link to the Utah Courts website that lists the holidays in which the Utah State Courts are closed; (3) add a requirement that parties include the position of all other parties when filing a motion; and (4) clean up language for clarity and consistency.

URAP052. Child welfare appeals. The Committee proposes amending Rule 52 to: (1) clarify what will be deemed the entry date for an order that is filed on the weekend or on a legal holiday; (2) clean up format for consistency.

URAP057. Record on appeal; transmission of record. The Committee proposes amending Rule 57 to clarify that the record on appeal consists of the juvenile’s entire legal file, but only those parts of the juvenile’s social file that the juvenile court actually considered.

Posted: December 12, 2022

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Comment Period Closed January 26, 2023

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.