Salt Lake City, UT---Rick Smith has been appointed as the new director of the Office of the Guardian ad Litem effective June 4, 2007. Smith replaces Kristen Brewer who accepted a position with the Washington State Office of the Attorney General. The Office of the Guardian ad Litem is charged with representing the best interests of children in cases of abuse, neglect, and dependency. Smith will oversee 39 attorney’s working as Guardians ad Litem throughout the state.
Smith has served as an attorney in the Fourth District Office of the Guardian ad Litem since 2001. Prior to this, he served as an attorney with Provo’s Howard, Lewis, & Petersen, PC, vice president and general counsel for PurCo Fleet Services, and special education and mental health coordinator for the Utah Rural Development Corporation. Smith received a law degree from the J. Ruben Clark School of Law at Brigham Young University and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from the University of Utah.
A search was conducted by the Utah Judicial Council’s Guardian ad Litem Oversight Committee. The Utah Judicial Council approved the appointment at its meeting on May 29, 2007.