Utah Courts – Page 7 – Utah Court Rules

Posted: November 9, 2022

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Mandatory Continuing Education – Comment Period Closed December 24, 2022

The Utah Supreme Court’s Board of Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE Board) proposes amending the MCLE rules listed below. On the whole, these amendments update terminology, replacing “Live CLE” with “Verified CLE” and “Self-Study CLE” with “Elective CLE.” Rule 14-404 also clarifies some issues around the New Lawyer Training Program. And Rule 14-419 offers a new avenue for Bar licensees to obtain CLE credit: pro bono work.

Pro bono cases inherently contain an educational component because they often fall outside the licensee’s normal practice area. And there is always a large need for volunteers. As such, the Judicial Council’s Standing Committee on Resources for Self-represented Parties and the Bar’s Access to Justice Commission proposed allowing CLE credit to be given for pro bono service under the conditions identified in Rule 14-419.

The MCLE Board has, in turn, proposed a two-year pilot project to test whether the purposes for which CLE credit is given—providing education that contributes directly to a licensee’s competence, skills, professionalism, and civility—will be realized in Rule 14-419, and also whether such a rule will incentivize licensees to perform more pro bono services.

USB14-0402. Definitions. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0404. Active status lawyers MCLE, NLTP, admission on motion, multi-state compliance reciprocity, house counsel and UBE requirements; MCLE requirements for Paralegal Practitioners. AMEND. Terminology amendments; clarifications around the New Lawyer Training Program.

USB14-0408. Credit hour defined; application for approval. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0409. Categories of Elective CLE defined. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0410. Accreditation of CLE; undue hardship and special Accreditation. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0411. Board Accreditation of CLE. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0412. Presumptively approved CLE providers; presumptive CLE Accreditation. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0413. CLE Accreditation for qualified audio and video presentations, webcasts, computer interactive telephonic programs, writing, lecturing, teaching, public service, and live attendance. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0414. Certificate of compliance; filing, late, and reinstatement fees; suspension; reinstatement. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0418. Remote group CLE. AMEND. Terminology amendments.

USB14-0419. CLE Credit for Pro Bono Legal Services. NEW. Proposes a two-year pilot project that would provide CLE credit for pro bono services performed under the auspices of a Utah court, the Utah State Bar, or a sponsoring entity.

Posted: November 8, 2022

Rules of Professional Conduct and Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Comment Period Closed December 23, 2022

RULES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT

RPC08.03. Reporting Professional Misconduct. Amend. Clarifies that a lawyer or judge participating in a Utah State Bar-sponsored fee dispute resolution program is not required to disclose information gained in that program to the Office of Professional Conduct.

RULES GOVERNING THE UTAH STATE BAR

USB14-0111. Exemption from future testimony and confidentiality of records and information. Amend. Clarifies when the Bar may disclose confidential information and what information it may disclose; also clarifies that a Fee Dispute Resolution Committee member who participates in a fee dispute arbitration may not be called as a witness in any subsequent legal proceeding related to the fee dispute.

USB14-0116. Conduct of the mediation. Amend. Permits the fee dispute mediator to serve notice of the mediation by email on the mediating parties.

Posted: November 8, 2022

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Comment Period Closed December 23, 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.

Posted: October 31, 2022

Rules of Civil Procedure – Comment Period Closed December 15, 2022

URCP041. Dismissal of Actions. This rule was previously published for public comment after changes to subparagraphs (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(A)(i), and (a)(2). The issue of dismissing an action as to a particular party was brought to the Committee. The example posed included a multi-defendant case where a settlement agreement may have been reached as to some, but not all defendants, and the plaintiff sought to dismiss the action as to those particular defendants, but not all of the defendants. Rule 41 currently addresses the dismissal of an “action.” The Committee is proposing a change to subsections (a)(1)(A) and (a)(2) that would permit a plaintiff to dismiss an action, “a claim, or a party… .” Which is a slight language change from the previous amendment for the same purpose to make the language more clear.

Posted: October 27, 2022

Rules of Appellate Procedure – Comment Period Closed December 11, 2022

URAP020. Habeas corpus proceedings. Repeal/Add Advisory Committee Note. The Committee is posting for public comment the addition of an Advisory Committee Note to the repealed rule. This note is intended to alleviate concerns in regards to repealing Rule 20. The Committee previously proposed repealing Rule 20 because it is superfluous and confusing, and could prejudice a criminal defendant’s opportunity to seek relief under the Post-Conviction Remedies Act (PCRA). Rules 65B and 65C of the civil rules, together with the PCRA, Utah Code § 78B-9-101 to -110, already provide mechanisms to challenge the lawfulness of any official detention.

URAP019. Extraordinary writs. The Committee proposes amending Rule 19 to: (1) incorporate a page and word limit, and a certificate of compliance, similar to the requirements in Rule 24 regarding briefs; (2) add the ability for the petitioner to file a reply after service of a response; (3) increase the amount of time to file a response from 7 days to 30; (4) add an Advisory Committee Note advising parties that although Rule 20 has been repealed, they still have the ability to file directly to the Supreme Court under Rule 19 under appropriate circumstances; and (5) clean up language for clarity and consistency.

URAP023. Motions. The Committee proposes substituting “discussion” for “memorandum.” The Committee believes that the word “memorandum” can lead individuals to file unnecessarily a separate document containing the facts and arguments supporting their requests, rather than merely including those facts and arguments in the original petition or motion.

URAP023C. Motion for emergency relief. The Committee proposes amending Rule 23C to (1) change the reference to Rule 19; (2) change the rule reference in paragraph (e) concerning form of papers from Rule 23(f) to Rule 27, as paragraph 23(f) was relocated to Rule 27 effective November 1, 2021; and (3) correct formatting for consistency. The rule currently refers to a specific subparagraph in Rule 19 that will be renumbered under the proposed amendments. To avoid cross-referencing problems that future amendments may create, the Committee recommends directing parties to the general rule rather than a specific paragraph.

Posted: October 17, 2022

Rules of Juvenile Procedure – Comment Period Closed December 1, 2022

URJP022. Initial appearance and preliminary examination in cases under Utah Code section 80-6-503. Amend. The proposed amendments to Rule 22 include: (1) adding reference to Utah Code section 80-6-504 to the title; (2) changing the term “preliminary examination” to “preliminary hearing;” (3) in paragraph (g), clarifying timelines for scheduling preliminary hearings based on whether a youth is in custody, removing reference to Utah Code section 80-6-503, and moving the language allowing extension to time periods to the end of the paragraph; (4) updating paragraph (h) to reference 80-6-504 rather than 80-6-503 to correct a typographical error; and, (5) removing specific probable cause language and making reference to 80-6-504 instead.

Posted: October 13, 2022

Rules of Criminal Procedure – Comment Period Closed November 27, 2022

URCrP016. Discovery. AMEND. Rule 16 is amended to incorporate an updated reference to Rule 26(b)(6) of the Rules of Civil Procedure, which was modified and became effective May 4th, 2022.

Posted: September 23, 2022

Rules Governing the Utah State Bar – Comment Period Closed November 7, 2022

USB14-0802. Authorization to practice law. Amend. The purpose of the proposed amendments to Rule 14-802 is to give Licensed Paralegal Practitioners (LPPs) the ability to modify the court forms that are relevant to their areas of practice. This would give LPPs some 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.

Posted: September 23, 2022

Rules of Civil Procedure – Comment Period Closed November 7, 2022

URCP007. Pleadings allowed; motions, memoranda, hearings, orders. AMEND. The first proposed 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 proposed 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 proposed change to subparagraph (h) would clarify any 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 proposed change to subparagraph (h) would clarify any 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.

Posted: September 19, 2022

Code of Judicial Administration – Comment Period Closed November 3, 2022

CJA03-0412. Procurement of goods and service. (Amend). The small purchase limits have been increased to $5,000 per item and up to $10,000 for an entire purchase.