Utah State Bar News & Announcements

Young Lawyers Division-led program to celebrate Earth Day 2012

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah State Bar is offering Utah lawyers an opportunity to celebrate Earth Day and do a little spring cleaning at the same time, with a free E-waste recycling event this Saturday, April 28, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Bar’s Young Lawyers Division is working with Salt Lake City’s Metech Recycling to provide a staging area at the Utah Law & Justice Center, 645 South 200 East in Salt Lake City, where all Utah State Bar Members can drop off unwanted electronic equipment.

Vernal, UT---A panel of judges is scheduled to meet on May 7, 2009 to hear testimony to determine if reasonable cause exists to call a grand jury. The meeting will take place in the 8th Judicial District, Uintah County Courthouse, 920 East Highway 40, Vernal.

Those wanting to testify before the panel of judges should contact District Court Administrator Debra Moore at (801) 578-3800 by April 24, 2009, to schedule an appointment. Individuals testifying must be prepared to give evidence to support claims that justify calling a grand jury. Controversies between individual parties will not be considered. Individuals who need special accommodations during the hearing must notify the court at least three business days prior to the hearing.

Utah’s Grand Jury Statute requires a panel of judges selected from throughout the state to hold hearings in each judicial district every three years. The purpose of the hearings is to determine if a grand jury needs to be summoned based on evidence of criminal activity. The Grand Jury Panel is comprised of the following judges: Supervising Judge A. Lynn Payne, Eighth District Court; Judge Terry L. Christiansen, Third District Court; Judge Steven L. Hansen, Fourth District Court; Judge Sandra N. Peuler, Third District Court; and Judge W. Brent West, Second District Court.

The Attorney General, a county attorney, district attorney, or special prosecutor appointed under U.C.A. 77-10a-1 can also present evidence if it is based on criminal activity. The panel of judges will hear, in secret, all persons claiming information that justifies calling a grand jury. All individuals appearing before the panel of judges will be placed under oath. If a grand jury is summoned, the jurors will be called from the state-at-large or any judicial district within the state.

Salt Lake City, Utah—Chief Justice Christine M. Durham and Utah State Court Administrator Daniel Becker released the following statement towards the close of the 2009 Legislative Session.

“On behalf of the judges and staff of the Utah court system, I would like to express our gratitude to the Utah Legislature for addressing the budgetary needs of the state court system,” said Chief Justice Christine M. Durham. “The courts budget was in large measure restored by the passage of legislation increasing filing fees. We appreciate how difficult the decision to raise filing fees was for the Legislature.”

At the start of the 2009 Legislative Session, the courts faced the prospect of closing courts one day a week and eliminating hundreds of court staff positions. According to Utah State Court Administrator Daniel Becker, “such drastic measures would have severely reduced the public’s access to their courts and resulted in considerable delay in handling the work of the courts.”

Chief Justice Durham added, “The public is the real beneficiary of legislative efforts to address the needs of our court system.”