Utah Bar Journal

The “How To” Guide for Membership in the Paralegal Division: What Are the Requirements and Career Benefits of Membership?
by Peggi Lowden

Are you wondering how to apply for membership in the Paralegal Division of the Utah State Bar (the Division)? What is the Division’s definition of a paralegal? What are the educational and experience requirements for membership? Where are the application forms? Are there any CLE requirements to maintain membership? To better serve future members we offer this “How To” guide to answer questions and to assist applicants for membership in the Division.

Young Lawyer’s Division Update
by Stephanie Pugsley, Utah YLD President, 2007-2008

The Utah Young Lawyer’s Division has rolled out a sleek new website www.utahyounglawyers.org, and is now offering several new services for its members and the public. The “On Demand Mentor” video presentations, accessed via the website, offer experienced Utah practitioners’ insights on various legal and professional topics. Each ten-minute tutorial provides a concise overview of a selected topic from the presenter’s area of expertise. The new website also links to a YLD Blog that posts current events, upcoming activities, job openings, service projects, and young lawyer achievements. In addition, YLD members, as well as Utah and BYU law students, will receive a concise bi-monthly YLD E-Newsletter designed to keep readers up to date on the latest happenings within the YLD and the Bar.

With the largest membership of any Bar section, the YLD is continually working to assist new lawyers as they begin the practice of law, while keeping important commitments to serve the Utah legal community and the public at large. We invite all members of the Bar to visit and use the new YLD homepage and to join us in our upcoming activities.

Discipline Corner

PUBLIC REPRIMAND
On September 24, 2007, the Chair of the Ethics and Discipline Committee of the Utah Supreme Court entered an Order of Discipline: Public Reprimand against Samuel H. Adams for violation of Rules 5.3(b) (Responsibilities Regarding Nonlaywer Assistants), 5.3(c)(1) (Responsibilities Regarding Nonlawyer Assistants), 5.3(c)(2) (Responsibilities Regarding Nonlawyer Assistants), and 8.4(a) (Misconduct) of the Rules of Professional Conduct.

First (Annual?) Appellate Practice Section Poetry Contest Winners

Winning Limericks

First Place

A Thankless Task
When the Court an opinion doth send –
Much considered and carefully penned,
Painstakingly crafted,
Repeatedly drafted –
The attorneys skip right to the end.
- Scott M. Ellsworth

Thank You!

The Law and Aging Committee would like to thank the following attorneys for volunteering their time to the Senior Center Legal Consultation project. Many Salt Lake City seniors have benefitted from this valuable program. If you would like to help out with this project please call Christine Critchley at (801) 297-7022 or e-mail ccritchley@utahbar.org.

Richard Aaron
Jim Baker
Sharon Bertelsen
Richard Bird
R.F. Bojanowski
Douglas Cannon
David Castleton
Steven Crawley
John Diamond
Phillip Ferguson
Marianne McGregor Guelker
Laurie Hart
Jason Hunter
Mike Jensen
Joyce Maughan
Harry McCoy
Thomas Mecham
Kara Pettit
Kathie Roberts
Jane Semmel
Jeannine Timothy

Bar Welcomes New Admittees

Two hundred sixty nine new admittees will be welcomed into the Utah State Bar at an admission ceremony to be held at the Salt Palace on October 30, 2007. Family and friends of the new admittees will gather to listen while Michael J. Wilkins, Associate Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court, addresses the audience. Christine Durham, Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court will conduct the event.

A sincere thank you goes to all the volunteers who donate their time to assist with the admission process. Over 100 attorneys volunteer their time to assist the Bar in this endeavor. Attorney volunteers on the Character and Fitness Committee review applications to see that applicants meet character and fitness requirements and conduct character and fitness hearings. The Bar Examiner Committee drafts and reviews Bar exam questions and grade the exams. The Special Accommodations Committee reviews requests for test accommodations. The Bar greatly appreciates the contribution made by these individuals. THANK YOU!

Notice of Approved Amendments to Utah Court Rules
Under its expedited rulemaking authority, the Supreme Court has approved amendments to the following Utah court rules. The amendments are effective when indicated but subject to further change after the comment period. The comment deadline is August 30, 2007.

Pro Bono Honor Roll

William Adams
Heidi Alder
Erin Arnold
Brett Benson
Jonathan Benson
Scott Broadhead
Bryan Bryner
Gary Buhler
Mary Cline
Derek Coulter
David Day
Anne Deprey
Michael Eward
Shellie Flett
Frederick Green
Lou Gehrig Harris
Joseph Hatch
April Hollingsworth
John Holt
Jeffrey Howe
J. Bryan Jackson
David Jensen
Nathan Kunz
Michael Martinez
Adelaide Maudsley
John McCoy
Richard Medsker
William Morrison
Langdon Owen Jr.
Christopher Parker
Philip Patterson
Kara Pettit
Anthony Rippa
Raymond Rounds
Lauren Scholnick
Brad Smith
Kathryn Steffey
Steven Stewart
Mark Tanner
Travis Terry
Chris B. Turner
Shawn Turner
Kimberly Washburn
Orson West Jr.
Lamar Winward
Michael Zundel

Utah Legal Services and the Utah State Bar wish to thank these volunteers for their time and assistance during the months of August and September. Call Brenda Teig at (801) 924-3376 to volunteer.

2008 Spring Convention Awards

The Board of Bar Commissioners is seeking applications for two Bar awards to be given at the 2008 Spring Convention. These awards honor publicly those whose professionalism, public service, and public dedication have significantly enhanced the administration of justice, the delivery of legal services, and the improvement of the profession. Award applications must be submitted in writing to Christy Abad, Executive Secretary, 645 South 200 East, Suite 310, Salt Lake City, UT 84111, no later than Friday, January 11, 2008. You may also fax a nomination to (801) 531-0660 or email to cabad@utahbar.org.

1. Dorathy Merrill Brothers Award – For the Advancement of Women in the Legal Profession.

2. Raymond S. Uno Award – For the Advancement of Minorities in the Legal Profession.

Notice of Election of Bar President-Elect

Any active member of the Bar in good standing is eligible to submit his or her name to the Bar Commission to be nominated to run for the office of president-elect in a popular election and to succeed to the office of president. Indications of an interest to be nominated are due at the Bar offices, c/o Executive Director John Baldwin, 645 South 200 East, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84111 or via e-mail at john.baldwin@utahbar.org by 5:00 P.M. on January 2, 2008.

Commission Highlights

The Board of Bar Commissioners received the following reports and took the actions indicated during their regularly scheduled September 21, 2007 Commission meeting held in Salt Lake City, Utah.

1. The Commission approved the creation of a Juvenile Law Section. The Juvenile Law Section bylaws were also approved.

2. The Commission selected Frank Carney for the Professionalism Award and Dan Becker for Community Service Award. The Tuesday Night Bar Co-chairs (Matthew Wride, Kelly Latimer, and Christina Micken) were chosen for the Pro Bono Award. These awards will be presented at the Fall Forum on November 16, 2007 in the Salt Palace Convention Center.

The Ministry of Special Cases
by Nathan Englander

Reviewed by Betsy Ross

Set during Argentina’s Dirty War of the 1970s and 1980s, The Ministry of Special Cases captures a society in which passivity is paramount and truth is what the government says it is. Thus, when the government kidnaps suspected dissidents (or unsuspected innocents, as appears to be the case with the book’s character Pato), and denies it has done so, the Patos of society are spoken of as being “disappeared,” and a lie becomes truth – as if the disappeared never existed at all.

Utah Control Shares Acquisitions Act
by Brad R. Jacobsen

Utah’s Control Shares Acquisitions Act (Utah Code Ann. § 61-6-1 et seq. “Control Shares Act”) provides stringent rules governing takeovers of certain qualifying Utah corporations. The Control Shares Act is governed by numerous defined terms that must be carefully reviewed. The Control Shares Act denies voting rights to any person or entity (“acquiring person”) that acquires “control shares” of a Utah “issuing public corporation” (not necessarily an SEC public company) in a “control share acquisition.” The acquiring person’s voting rights may only be restored if shareholders holding a majority of shares that are not “interested shares” elect to restore those voting rights.

SEC Receivers: What Are They and What Do They Do?
by Robert G. Wing and Katherine Norman

Federal Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) receiverships are becoming a more common sight on the dockets of the Federal District Court for the District of Utah. In the past ten years the SEC has filed six actions in Utah that resulted in receiver appointment: SEC v. Novus Technologies, et al., 2:07CV235-PGC; SEC v. Wolfson, et al., 2:03CV914-DAK; SEC v. 4NExchange, et al., 2:02CV431-DAK; SEC v. Merrill Scott & Associates, Ltd., et al., 2:02CV39-TC; SEC v. Miller, 2:99CV383-DB; and SEC v. Capital Acquisitions, et al., 2:97CV977-DB. This article focuses on federal equity receiverships brought at the request of the SEC. The Federal Trade Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have also brought equity receivership actions in Utah courts, either as a companion case to SEC actions or separately. See FTC v. Peterson, 3 Fed. Appx. 780 (10th Cir. 2001). Courts have not drawn distinctions between equity receiverships based on the agency seeking them. An understanding of the mechanics of equity receiverships is important when a client either has invested with a receivership company or has a claim against a company.

Helping Our Clients Tell the Truth: Rule of Professional Conduct 2.1 in Criminal Cases
by Ted Weckel

Over the past 14 years, I have practiced in the area of criminal law. I have tried one federal murder case to verdict and have represented clients in scores of other serious cases. I have worked for a public defender’s office in Virginia and have accepted many cases under the federal and D.C. Criminal Justice Act programs. One issue which has troubled me at times pertains to whether we as lawyers should be striving to obtain an acquittal at all costs for our client’s benefit (and of course for our own recognition), before considering whether we should first advise our clients of the moral implications of going to trial, when we suspect that they are lying to us about the facts of their case. Let’s put aside, for the moment, the fact that some police officers not infrequently ignore the constitutional rights of our clients, trick them into confessing, fabricate evidence and “testi-lie,” and that some prosecutors charge our clients with crimes for which they are not guilty. That is why we take these kinds of cases – to protect the innocent and less valued members of society from oppression.

The First Decade: The Consumer Assistance Program Has Proven Itself to be a Valuable Program
by Jeannine P. Timothy

Ten years ago, the Utah State Bar initiated the Consumer Assistance Program (CAP) designed to offer assistance to consumers who have minor complaints about their attorneys. The program was spearheaded by former bar president Charlotte Miller and former Utah Supreme Court Justice Michael Zimmerman, both of whom had been introduced to the concept of an informal assistance program by the Mississippi State Bar and decided Utah needed just such an office. Not only would the program assist consumers, but it would also help attorneys resolve minor complaints with their clients. By the end of September 1997, the Utah State Bar CAP was in full swing, and newspaper articles notified the public of the new part-time office. Calls immediately started coming in, and they haven’t slacked off since. Based on the number of clients and attorneys whom CAP has assisted over the years, one can easily conclude that CAP is among the most important programs the Utah State Bar developed during the past decade.

The Diversion Process in Disciplinary Cases: Utah Rule 14-533
by Lori Nelson

On November 1, 2007, Utah Rule 14-533 becomes effective, formalizing Utah’s process for diversion. Although diversion from discipline has always been an option in particular disciplinary cases, the rule makes the process formal and details the specifics and qualification for diversion.

Professionally Insured…To Be or Not to Be
by V. Lowry Snow

You will recall that the re-licensing process this year included questions regarding Bar member professional malpractice insurance coverage. We appreciate your participation. The purpose for gathering the information was to determine the extent to which professional malpractice coverage is being utilized by our members and to provide a basis for improving the Bar’s effort to facilitate the availability and promote the affordability of coverage. The survey information has been gathered, analyzed, and summarized. The results contain a mix of good news along with some news that could be better. On the positive side, we found that approximately 74% of active lawyers involved in representing private clients (i.e., not government or in-house counsel), carry malpractice coverage. I believe the overall percentage of coverage is better than many had predicted. Firms of 11 lawyers or more enjoy the highest percentage of coverage at nearly 99%. Conversely, the group comprising solo practitioners had the lowest percentage, with only 38% having coverage. Approximately 82% of firms with 2–10 lawyers reported being insured. It is interesting to note the regional differentiation across the State, with the highest percentages of coverage being in the Third Judicial District at almost 80% and the more rural Sixth and Eighth Districts at 38% and 43% respectively. The most widely reported reason for not having insurance coverage was that it was “too expensive,” at 51%. The full results of the survey are posted on the Bar’s web page at www.utahbar.org.

Vol. 20 No. 6 Nov/Dec

PDF Version

Cover Art Information: Sunrise over Jordanelle Reservoir by first-time contributor Craig Hall, Chapman & Cutler, Salt Lake City.

* President's Message: Professionally Insured... To Be or Not to Be
* The Diversion Process in Disciplinary Cases: Utah Rule 14-533
* The First Decade: The Consumer Assistance Program Has Proven Itself to be a Valuable Program
* Helping Our Clients Tell the Truth: Rule of Professional Conduct 2.1 in Criminal Cases
* SEC Receivers: What Are They and What Do They Do?
* Utah Control Shares Acquisitions Act
* Book Review: The Ministry of Special Cases by Nathan Englander
* The Young Lawyer: Young Lawyer's Division Update
* The Paralegal Division: The "How To" Guide for Membership in the Paralegal Division: What Are the Requirements and Career Benefits of Membership?