Utah Courts – Page 3 – Utah Court Rules

Posted: November 15, 2023

Rule of Criminal Procedure – Comment Period Closed December 30, 2023

URCrP021. Verdict Options. Amend. The proposed amendments make minor modifications to language use throughout the Rule and include a new subsection on legally impossible verdicts. This subsection explains the role of the Court in vacating a legally impossible verdict and describes when a legally impossible verdict occurs. The Committee incorporated this subsection into the Rule based on the Utah Supreme Court’s holding in Pleasant Grove v. Terry, 2020 UT 69.

Posted: October 4, 2023

Rules of Civil Procedure – Comment Period Closed November 18, 2023

URCP012. Defenses and objections. AMEND. After this rule was posted for public comment there are additional proposed changes to subparagraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2). The amendments clarify the applicability of the rules and the language for pleadings filed in domestic relations actions.

URCP083. Vexatious litigants. AMEND. Amendments were previously made to this rule and published for comment. Amendments are now also proposed to lines 42 and 63 to include the language “or petition for permission to” in these sentences. Furthermore, an amendment is proposed to add the language “after notice and an opportunity to be heard” to subparagraph (b) to clarify the vexatious litigants’ right to notice and an opportunity to be heard on these issues.

Posted: September 26, 2023

Rules of Appellate Procedure – Comment Period Closed November 10, 2023

URAP004. Appeal as of right: when taken. The Committee has previously sent Rule 4 out for public comment in regards to the following proposed changes to: (1) explain the standard governing a motion to reinstate the time for appeal in a criminal case; (2) restructure paragraph (f) to be consistent with paragraph (g) (addressing reinstating the right to appeal in civil cases); (3) include a one-year deadline from discovery of facts giving rise to the claim; (4) clarify what will be deemed the entry date for an order that is filed on the weekend or on a legal holiday; and (5) clean up language for clarity and consistency.

The Committee has since made additional changes to: (1) requiring a defendant to include in the motion for reinstatement the reasons for filing later than the one year deadline; and (2) clarifying when the time for appeal beings to run when multiple post-judgment motions are decided separately.

URAP027. Form of briefs, motions, and other documents. The Committee proposes amendments to Rule 27 to: (1) provide more detailed guidance for preparing the caption for briefs and to conform the rule to current practice; (2) remove the requirement that opposing counsel be listed on the cover, as this information will be included on a following page; and (3) clarify the requirements for captions on petitions and motions or other documents that are not a brief or petition.

Posted: September 25, 2023

Rules of Juvenile Procedure – Comment Period Closed November 9, 2023

URJP017. The petition. Amend. The proposed amendments to Rule 17 include: updating references to statute as a result of changes enacted by House Bill 60 of the 2023 Legislative Session; changing the proper noun County Attorney or District Attorney to “the office of the county attorney” or “the office of the district attorney”; changing the proper noun Clerk of Court to “court clerk”; and replacing the language “shall” with “must” according to the Supreme Court Style Guide.

Posted: September 19, 2023

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

CJA06-0301. Authority of court commissioner as magistrate. (AMEND). Within the bounds of Utah Code section 78A-5-107 and constitutional limitations on the delegation of judicial authority, the proposed amendments broaden commissioners’ magistrate authority. The rule identifies the types of cases and matters court commissioners are authorized to hear and the types of relief and orders they may recommend. The rule also establishes timely judicial review of recommendations and orders made by a court commissioner.

CJA04-0202.08. Fees for records, information, and services. (AMEND). The proposed amendments 1) clarify that personnel time may be charged to copy records, 2) clarify that court appointed attorneys qualify for a fee waiver if they are requesting records on behalf of an indigent client and the client would qualify for a waiver, and 3) add a provision regarding bulk data. Bulk data fees and individual hourly rates removed from the rule would be posted on the court webpage.

CJA04.0202.02. Records classification. (AMEND)

CJA04-0202.03. Records access. (AMEND).

The proposed amendments classify video records of court proceedings, other than security video, as sealed and limit access to 1) official court transcribers for the purposes outlined in Rule 5-202, 2) court employees if needed to fulfill official court duties, and 3) anyone by court order. Individuals denied access may file a motion with the court under Rule 4-202.04.

Posted: August 29, 2023

Rules of Juvenile Procedure – Comment Period Closed October 13, 2023

URJP009. Detention hearings; scheduling; hearing procedure. Amend. The proposed amendments to Rule 9 include the addition of paragraph (o) allowing the juvenile court to review predisposition orders to detention every 30 days instead of every 7 days when there is concurrent jurisdiction in the district and juvenile courts or when a criminal information is pending in the juvenile court. The changes also include replacing the language “shall” with “must” or “will” to comply with the Supreme Court Style Guide.

URJP010. Bail for non-resident minors. Amend. The proposed amendments to Rule 10 include updating references to statute.

Posted: August 23, 2023

Rules of Civil Procedure – Comment Period Closed October 7, 2023

URCP056. Summary judgment. AMEND. The proposed changes to subparagraph (b) is aimed to provide clarity to the deadline for filing motions for summary judgment so as not to be dependent upon the close of discovery.

Posted: July 27, 2023

Rules of Professional Conduct – Comment Period Closed September 10, 2023

RPC01.02. Scope of representation and allocation of authority between client and lawyer. Licensed paralegal practitioner notice to be displayed. AMEND. Clarifies the circumstances under which a lawyer may advise or assist a client with respect to Utah’s cannabis laws.

Posted: July 19, 2023

Rules of Professional Conduct – Comment Period Closed September 2, 2023

RPC07.01. Communications Concerning a Lawyer’s Services. AMEND. Rule 7.1 was recently circulated for comment in response to a petition to the Supreme Court. That petition expressed concern about the direct solicitation of potential clients soon after traumatic events. The petition proposed returning to the Rules of Professional Conduct a ban on direct solicitation. Such a ban previously appeared in Rule 7.3 and still appears in the ABA Model Rule. The Utah Supreme Court eliminated the ban on direct solicitation in 2020. The proposed amendments that were drafted in response to the petition generated a large number of comments in opposition. Using Fla. Bar v. Went For It, Inc., 515 U.S. 618, 620–21 (1995) as a guide, the rule was redrafted to more narrowly address the petition’s concerns. That rule proposal is now the subject of this comment period.

RPC08.04. Misconduct. AMEND. Rule 8.4 circulated for comment last year. The proposal attempted to codify in a new paragraph (2) Ethics Advisory Opinion 02-05, which concluded that 8.4(1)(c) (conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation) does not apply to government attorneys overseeing an otherwise legal undercover criminal investigation. The proposal as written received a number of comments in opposition. A new proposal, which is now the subject of this comment period, provides that while it is professional misconduct for a lawyer to engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation, a lawyer may participate in lawful investigatory activities employing deception for the purpose of detecting ongoing violations of law. Those lawful investigatory activities include governmental “sting” operations; use of testers in fair-housing cases to determine whether landlords or real estate agents discriminate against protected classes of applicants; and gathering evidence of copyright violations.

Posted: June 29, 2023

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Comment Period Closed August 13, 2023

USB14-0403. Establishment and membership of Board. Amend. This amendment reduces the size of the MCLE Board from 15 to 10 voting members. This amendment also adjusts the term lengths of new appointments to the Board.