Utah State Bar News & Announcements

Salt Lake City, Utah—Two judges have been elected to the Utah Judicial Council to serve a three-year term: 3rd District Juvenile Court Judge Kimberly K. Hornak and 1st District Court Judge Thomas L. Willmore will begin their terms Oct. 1, 2009. These judges have replaced 2nd District Juvenile Court Judge Mark Andrus and 2nd District Court Judge Michael Lyon who completed their terms.

The Utah Judicial Council is the policy-making body for the judiciary. The Council has the constitutional authority to adopt uniform rules for the administration of all courts in the state. The Council also sets standards for judicial performance, court facilities, support services, and judicial and non-judicial staff levels.

Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice Christine M. Durham chairs the Council, which consists of 14 members. Other members are as follows: Utah Supreme Court Justice Ronald E. Nehring, Court of Appeals Judge Gregory K. Orme, 3rd District Court Judge Judith S.H. Atherton, 5th District Court Judge G. Michael Westfall, 5th District Juvenile Court Judge Hans Q. Chamberlain, Saratoga Springs and West Valley Justice Court Judge Keith Stoney, West Valley Justice Court Judge Brendan P. McCullagh, Uintah County Justice Court Judge G.A. “Jody” Petry, Utah State Bar Representative Lori Nelson, Esq., and Utah State Court Administrator Dan Becker who serves as secretariat to the Council. The judges and Utah State Bar representative all serve three-year terms.

The Utah State Bar along with the American Bar Association is launching a “Celebrate Pro Bono” week to draw focus to the increasing need for pro bono services during these unstable economic times and the unprecedented response of attorneys to meet this demand. A recent study suggests that 75% of lawyers donate at least 50 hours per year to pro bono services. This celebration provides an opportunity for the Utah legal community to recognize the contributions of our lawyers and to recruit additional volunteers to meet the growing need. Goals for our week-long celebration include:

1. Recognizing the pro bono efforts of Utah's lawyers


2. Recruiting more pro bono volunteers


3. Mobilizing community support for pro bono>/li>
   

We have an opportunity to serve lunch to low income and homeless individuals at the St. Vincent dePaul Resource Center (235 S. Rio Grande Street) in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, October 27, 2009. Following the meal, lawyers will offer a free legal clinic, answering questions regarding a variety of legal topics. If you are interested in participating in this event please contact Christy Abad at adminasst@utahbar.org or register online at http://www.utahbar.org/cle/events/pro_bono_week.html.

Also on October 27th, there will be a free legal clinic at Utah Valley University from 6-8 p.m. in the Timpanogos Room of Utah Valley University Library (800 W. University Parkway, Orem). Utah County attorneys available to give their time and expertise should contact the Legal Studies Office 801-863-8134 or email Jill.Jasperson@byulaw.net.

More information on these and other events is available on the Bar’s website at
http://www.utahbar.org/assets/pro_bono_chart.pdf. We hope that you will find a way to serve!

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The Supreme Court and the Judicial Council invite comments to proposed amendments to the following court rules. The comment period expires November 17, 2009.

Summary of proposed amendments:

Rules of Civil Procedure
URCP 065C. Post-conviction relief. Amend Recognizes Utah’s Post Conviction Remedies Act as the law governing post-conviction relief.

Rules of Juvenile Procedure
URJP 25A. Withdrawal of plea. New. Establishes standards and procedures for withdrawal of a plea in juvenile court.

Code of Judicial Administration
CJA 04-0409. Council Approval of Problem Solving Courts. Amend. Establish best-practices criteria and require recertification biannually.
CJA 07-0304. Probation supervision. Amend. Add an assessment tool based on evidence-based practices for working with low-risk offenders.

How to view redline text of the proposed amendments:

To see proposed rule amendments and submit comments, click on this linkto: http://www.utcourts.gov/resources/rules/comments/. Then click on the rule number.

How to submit comments:

You can comment and view the comments of others by clicking on the "comments" link associated with each body of rules. It's more efficient for us if you submit comments through the website, and we encourage you to do so. After clicking on the comment link, you will be prompted for your name, which we request, and your email address and URL, which are optional. This is a public site. If you do not want to disclose your email address, omit it. Time does not permit us to acknowledge comments, but all will be considered.

Submit comments directly through the website or to:

Tim Shea
Email: tims@email.utcourts.gov Please include the comment in the message text, not in an attachment.
Fax: 801-578-3843
Administrative Office of the Courts
POB 140241
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-0241

One method of submitting a comment is sufficient.

NOMINEES ANNOUNCED FOR THIRD DISTRICT COURT VACANCY

Salt Lake City, UT--The 3rd District Judicial Nominating Commission has selected five nominees for a vacancy on the 3rd District Court bench. The position replaces Judge Sheila McCleve who retired July 1, 2009. The 3rd Judicial District is comprised of Salt Lake, Summit, and Tooele counties.

The nominees are as follows: Katherine Bernards-Goodman, of Sandy, assistant division chief, Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office; Evelyn “Eve” J. Furse, of Peoa, senior city attorney, Salt Lake City Corporation; Steven K. Gordon, of Park City, attorney, Durham, Jones & Pinegar; Keith A. Kelly, of Salt Lake City, shareholder and director, Ray, Quinney & Nebeker; and Andrew H. Stone, of Salt Lake City, shareholder, Jones, Waldo, Holbrook & McDonough.

A 10-day public comment period will be held before the names are submitted to the Governor. Third District Nominating Commission Chair Trina Higgins is accepting written comments regarding the nominees at the Administrative Office of the Courts, P.O. Box 140241, Salt Lake City, UT, 84114-0241. The deadline for written comments is 5 p.m. on October 26, 2009.

The commission may request further interviews or an investigation of the nominees after reviewing public comments. After the public comment period, the names will be sent to the Governor who has 30 days to select a candidate. The Governor’s nominee is then forwarded to the Senate Confirmation Committee, which reviews the nominee’s qualifications and conducts a public hearing and interview session. The Senate Confirmation Committee will forward the final nominee to the Utah State Senate, which has 60 days from the Governor’s nomination to confirm the nominee.

By Carole Mikita

Video Courtesy of KSL.com

SALT LAKE CITY -- Some Utah lawyers are joining a national movement this week to offer free legal advice to people who can't afford it. The attorneys reached out first to those in Salt Lake City who are homeless.

Members of the Utah Bar Association are participating in a national pro bono week with attorneys in 39 states. They hope, with their experience, to provide useful information to those in our community who feel they don't have a voice.

On Tuesday, 25 lawyers volunteered to serve equal parts of lunch and legal advice to people who wouldn't get either without help. The economic downturn has created more people without jobs or homes who need help.

25 lawyers volunteered Tuesday to serve equal parts of lunch and legal advice to people who wouldn't get either without help "There tends to be a lot of immigration issues, minor criminal issues, family law issues; but the whole full spectrum," says Dave Hall, co-chair of the Utah Pro Bono Week Celebration.

That spectrum also includes housing issues, disputes with landlords, employment problems--particularly with unclaimed wages--and there are family matters.

"Mom's trying to get custody of her kids, trying to get a divorce, trying to flee from a domestic abuse or violence situation; a lot of family law," explains Jose Lazaro, director of St. Vincent de Paul Basic Needs Services.

Every week an attorney volunteers a few hours of his or her time to the homeless, but it is never enough. This Tuesday, they talked, shared information and provided gloves that included the phone number for low-income legal services to each client.

The attorneys say that even in just a few minutes they can do a lot to help one of these clients.

"We can tell them which court they need to go to, which questions to ask. Sometimes they just need to fill out a form to get their benefits restarted," says Candice Vogel, co-chair of the Utah Pro Bono Week Celebration.

One man KSL News spoke with says, for him, it was at least a beginning.

"It's very helpful, because it calms you down and it just gets your mind where, if everybody can't help you, they can give you some good resources," Max says.

The attorneys are offering free legal clinics at 22 locations around the state this week. CLICK HERE for a list of times and locations.

E-mail: cmikita@ksl.com

By Peg McEntee
Tribune Columnist

Updated: 10/29/2009 08:00:16 AM MDT

Peg McEntee (The Salt Lake Tribune)Leonard W. Burningham is a tall, rangy guy, and you can just see him cooking up tubs full of turkey dressing to help feed the homeless during the holidays.

It's something the securities attorney has been doing since 1979, and this year, he wants every attorney in Salt Lake County, if not the state, to provide a full meal for those in need.

And why not? "There are more attorneys than there are people," he jokes.

It's not just about food, either: Burningham, his family, friends, lawyers, firms and court personnel also will, as they have in the past, collect clothing, household goods and personal care kits for those who need them.

OK, OK, I can hear the lawyer jokes already. But this is a good thing.

It all started that first Thanksgiving, when Burningham was alone, his family out of town. He went out and bought a couple of cases of eggnog and headed for the Eagle Ranch Ministries' Jennie Dudley and her makeshift kitchen under the 400 South viaduct.

There were hams and turkeys and luscious pastries, he said. But the meal needed mashed potatoes and particularly dressing, which Burningham, an avid cook, considers to be one of his specialties.

Through the years, Burningham's crusade expanded to the Rescue Mission, the YWCA's shelter for abused women and children and the Utah Food Bank.

"It just kind of grew," Burningham says. "Court administrators, secretaries, paralegals, everybody helped."

Lincoln Mead, IT director at the Utah Bar Association, has worked with Burningham for about a decade.

"He's a really, really engaged guy who absolutely loves what he does," Mead says. "He's never lost his enthusiasm for this project. Every year he drives a little farther and a little harder."

At 68, Burningham still works at his Salt Lake firm along with his two grown sons, but tries to leave the office at about 2:30 p.m. to meet up with his 9-year-old after school for taekwondo and homework.

His work, the food-and-clothing project and his family are the fruit of "all the dreams you have when you're 25," Burningham says. "It's amazing."

And it's not just his own kids who get Burningham's attention, Mead says. One day, he mentioned that his son had gotten interested in all things military, and a couple of months later, the boy started getting Armchair General magazine, courtesy of Burningham.

"He catches on to things like that and just takes action on it," Mead says. "We see it at the food and clothing drive... there's a huge crowd behind him, helping out."

The "Twentieth Annual Lawyers & Court Personnel Food & Winter Clothing Drive for the Less Fortunate" wraps up on Dec. 18.

For information on how and when to participate, e-mail Burningham at lwb@burninglaw.com.
[or please visit www.utahbar.org/members/foodclothingdrive.html --Bar staff]

pegmcentee@sltrib.com