Author: Utah Courts

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar

Petition. Petition to modify bar rules relating to the offices of president and president-elect. Standardize the requirements for a Commissioner to vacate his or her unexpired term when succeeding to the office of President. Provide for the event that the Commission is unable to nominate two candidates for the office of President-elect to run in a contested election.
USB 14-0103. Organization and management of the Bar. Amend. Exhibit 1.
USB 14-0205. Board. Amend. Exhibit 2.
Exhibit 3.
Exhibit 4.
Exhibit 5.
USB 14-0206. Officers. Amend. Exhibit 6.

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Rules of Civil Procedure

URCP 007. Pleadings allowed; motions, memoranda, hearings, orders, objection to commissioner’s order. Amend. Move process for objecting to a commissioner’s recommendation from Rule 7 to Rule 101.
URCP 101. Motion practice before court commissioners. Amend. Move process for objecting to a commissioner’s recommendation from Rule 7 to Rule 101.

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Rules of Appellate Procedure

URAP 19. Extraordinary writs. Amend. The amendment will require a petitioner seeking extraordinary relief to state whether interlocutory appeal was sought, and if so, the results of the petition.
URAP 25. Brief of an amicus curiae or guardian ad litem. Amend. The proposal establishes specific deadlines for filing a brief of an amicus curiae.
URAP 37. Suggestion of mootness; voluntary dismissal. Amend. The amendments clarify that a suggestion of mootness should be filed only when one or more, but less than all, of the issues have become moot. If all the issues are moot, a motion for voluntary dismissal must be filed. The amendments also establish a pr
URAP 38. Substitution of counsel. Amend. The amendments clarify the process for substituting a party when a party becomes incompetent or for other causes.
URAP 49. Petition for writ of certiorari. Amend. A petition of writ of certiorari shall include references to the record on appeal or to the opinion of the Court Appeals, rather than referring to both sources.
URAP 50. Brief in opposition; reply brief; brief of an amicus curiae. Amend. The proposal establishes a more detailed process for submitting a proposed amicus brief, including the contents of the brief and deadlines.

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Code of Judicial Conduct

CJC Canons Amend. The Utah Supreme Court is considering wholesale changes to the Utah Code of Judicial Conduct. The changes are based on the new ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct, which was issued in 2007. The ABA Model Code is based on the previous Model Code, but the format is different and there are many new and deleted provisions. The draft document shows the variations from the 2007 Model Code that Utah is considering.

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Code of Judicial Administration

CJA 04-202.02. Records classification. Amend. Classifies as private the records in guardianship and conservatorship cases, except the order and letter of appointment. Classifies as private the records in guardianship and conservatorship cases, except the order and letter of appointment. Classifies some select data elements as public or private. This rule is being published for comment a second time, after amendments made in response to earlier comments. The further changes are highlighted in yellow.
CJA 04-202.03. Records access. Amend. Permit access to juvenile court records by the Department of Human Services.
CJA 04-202.09. Miscellaneous. Amend. Prohibits including non-public information in an otherwise public document. Specifies substitutes for personal identifying information.This rule is being published for comment a second time, after amendments made in response to earlier comments. The further changes are highlighted in yellow.

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Rules Governing the Utah State Bar

NLTP Petition. Petition to establish a new lawyer training program with all exhibits including proposed rule amendments.
Affected Rules:
USB 14-0402. Definitions. Amend. Exhibit 13.
USB 14-0404. Active status lawyers: MCLE, NLTP and admission on motion requirements. Amend. Exhibit 10.
USB 14-0415. Failure to satisfy MCLE requirements; notice; appeal procedures; reinstatement; waivers and extensions; deferrals. Amend. Exhibit 11.
USB 14-0417. Miscellaneous fees and expenses. Amend. Exhibit 12.
USB 14-0705. Admission on motion. Amend. Exhibit 9.
USB 14-0801. Definitions. Amend. Exhibit 8.
USB 14-0808. New lawyer training program. Amend. Exhibit 7.

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Rules of Juvenile Procedure

URJP 09. Detention hearings; scheduling; hearing procedure. Amend. Specifies time for review of different types of pre-disposition orders.
URJP 25. Pleas. Amend. Modifies the findings needed to accept a plea.

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Rules Governing the Utah State Bar

Petition. Petition to amend the bar’s fee dispute rules governing mediation. Revisions requested to Utah State Bar’s Fee Dispute Rules (formerly Fee Arbitration Rules) to further clarify the mediation process approved by the Supreme Court last year. The proposed amendments provide additional details, such as what qualifies for mediation, how mediation can be requested, how mediators are selected, confidentiality, mediation procedures.
USB 14-1103. Exclusions. Amend.
USB 14-1112. Request and agreement to mediate fee dispute, answer. New.
USB 14-1113. Selection of mediator. New.
USB 14-1114. Matters entitled to mediation. New.
USB 14-1115. Mediation is voluntary. New.
USB 14-1116. Conduct of the mediation. New.
USB 14-1117. Confidentiality. New.
USB 14-1118. Ex parte communications with the mediator. New.
USB 14-1119. Exemption from future testimony. New.
USB 14-1120. Mediation agreement. New.

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Rules of Criminal Procedure

URCrP 27. Stays pending appeal from courts of record. Amend. The amendments remove courts not of record from the rule. The process for courts not of record will be in new rule 27A. The amendments also make structural changes to help clarify the process for seeking a stay.
URCrP 27A. Stays pending appeal from courts not of record. New. This is a new rule specifically directed at appellate stays in justice court proceedings. The rule creates 3 different processes depending on the type of judgment appealed. Judgments with no jail time are automatically stayed. A notice of appeal on a judgment of incarceration less than 30 days serves as an automatic motion for a stay. In cases involving a judgment of 30 days or more, a motion must be filed. A judgment for incarceration of 30 days are more. There is a presumption in favor of a stay.
URCrP 38. Appeals from Justice Court to District Court. Amend. The amendments provide more detail on the process for appealing justice court judgments. The amendments describe the contents of the notice of appeal, the duties of the justice court when transferring the case, and the duties of the district in handling the appeal.

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Code of Judicial Administration

CJA 04-403. Signature stamp use. Amend. Deletes “orders prepared by the court” from the list of documents for which a judge may give blanket authority to stamp his or her signature. Approved as an expedited amendment under Rule 2-205. Subject to further change after the comment period.
CJA 04-906. Guardian ad litem program. Amend. Establishes the relationship between the Director, the Oversight Committee, attorneys, staff and volunteers. Clarifies the complaint, discipline and appeal process.

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