http://www.abajournal.com/news/ en Copyright 2013 2013-05-24T08:01:32-06:00 http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/teen_goalie_is_charged_with_homicide_by_assault_in_refs_death_will_he_be_ch/ A 17-year-old goalie from Utah has been charged with third-degree felony homicide by assault after he was accused of punching a volunteer soccer referee who later died. Salt Lake County prosecutors are seeking to move the case into adult court, report the New York Times and… Criminal Justice, Juvenile Justice, Entertainment & Sports Law, States, Utah Thu, 09 May 2013 10:02:11 -0500 44104.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/salt_lake_tribune_applauds_threatened_lawsuits_over_indigent_defense/ In Utah, counties are on their own when it comes to indigent defense. The state provides no funding and no oversight. The problem, according to the Salt Lake Tribune, is the “likelihood that such a system will be wildly inconsistent.” In an editorial, the newspaper praises… Criminal Justice, Public Defenders, States, Utah Thu, 11 Apr 2013 05:35:58 -0500 43666.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/utah_couple_give_up_custody_battle_over_adopted_daughter/ A Utah couple have given up their fight for custody of the 21-month-old girl they adopted at birth. Jared and Kristi Frei say the ongoing legal battle over custody isn't worth the "potential psychological damage" it could have on the child, the Salt Lake… Family Law, Judiciary, Personal Lives, Trials & Litigation, States, Utah Fri, 15 Feb 2013 11:13:22 -0600 42885.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/former_public_defender_faces_trial_accused_of_extorting_indigent_clients_to/ A former public defender in Utah is set to go to trial in Panguitch this week on charges that he used his position to extort money and items of value from more than a half-dozen clients. Onetime Garfield County public defender John E. Hummel is accused of pressuring at least… Criminal Justice, Public Defenders, Trials & Litigation, Attorney Fees, States, Utah Mon, 28 Jan 2013 17:28:34 -0600 42585.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/fugitive_immigration_lawyer_arrested_after_2_years_on_the_run_authorities_s/ A Utah immigration lawyer who has been considered a fugitive since violating pretrial release conditions in a federal visa fraud case has been caught at the U.S. border, near a California-Mexico entry point. James Hector Alcala, 44, was criminally charged in 2009, along with his law firm and other defendants,… Criminal Justice, White Collar Crime, Immigration Law, Law Firms, Partners, Solos/Small Firms, Trials & Litigation, 10th Circuit Court, States, Utah Wed, 09 Jan 2013 17:00:43 -0600 42284.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/top_utah_court_nixes_attorneys_effort_to_implead_3rd_party_in_discipline_ca/ Utah's top court has nixed an effort by a lawyer to bring a new third party, a client-related entity, into an attorney disciplinary case. The impleader had been granted by a state district court, pursuant to the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure. But in a Tuesday ruling (PDF)… Appellate Practice, Civil Procedure, Legal Ethics, Trials & Litigation, States, Utah Wed, 05 Dec 2012 09:45:10 -0600 41880.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/court_funding/ State chief justices and court administrators met this week in Washington, D.C., to discuss policy priorities for the upcoming year and beyond. Many of them took time Thursday to join in or attend a panel discussion concerning best practices and methods for dealing with severe budgeting constraints. They heard plenty… Judiciary, States, Utah, Vermont Thu, 15 Nov 2012 16:02:26 -0600 41658.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/wrongful_death_suit_filed_in_car_crash_cites_nebraska_fetal_protection_law/ A wrongful death suit filed on behalf of a Maryland family killed in a Nebraska car crash also seeks damages for the death of a fetus. The case may be the first civil suit based on Nebraska’s 2003 law expanding legal protections to fetuses at any stage of development, the… Tort Law, Injury & Accident Law, Medical Malpractice, Trials & Litigation, States, Alabama, Nebraska, Utah Mon, 05 Nov 2012 09:31:07 -0600 41472.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/utah_ag_takes_stand_re_unpaid_5.6m_judgment_expresses_relief_at_not_being_j/ The top law enforcement official in Utah expressed relief Friday that a state court judge didn't jail him for contempt months after a deadline expired for paying a $5.6 million court-ordered bill for services provided by a Salt Lake City accountant, lawyers and others responsible for liquidating a communal land… Constitutional Law, Government Law, Legislation & Lobbying, Trials & Litigation, Attorney Fees, Evidence, 10th Circuit Court, States, Utah Fri, 02 Nov 2012 16:41:58 -0500 41466.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/judge_cites_egregious_error_by_judge_who_sent_woman_to_jail_for_recording_v/ A Utah judge has overturned a contempt citation for a woman sentenced to jail for recording court proceedings. Judge Claudia Laycock said the contempt order by Justice Court Judge Keith Stoney of Saratoga Springs violated the woman’s right to due process, the Deseret News reports. Stoney had… Judiciary, Legal Ethics, States, Utah Thu, 09 Aug 2012 08:43:37 -0500 40109.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/prominent_utah_criminal_defense_attorney_says_man_who_stabbed_him_at_home_w/ Stabbed by in his Salt Lake City home earlier this month, a prominent Utah criminal defense attorney told reporters in a Tuesday email that the intruder who attacked him was a total stranger to him. Steven B. Killpack, 63, escaped and sought help from neighbors. The alleged intruder, who has… Criminal Justice, Public Defenders, Personal Lives, States, Utah Tue, 17 Jul 2012 17:13:39 -0500 39750.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/judicial_proceedings_privilege_protects_law_firm_for_helping_execute_unusua/ The Utah Supreme court has ruled the judicial proceedings privilege protects a Utah law firm and its lawyers in a tort suit over the seizure of electronic devices from a litigant’s home. The suit targeted Utah law firm Parr Waddoups Brown Gee & Loveless for its role in executing civil… Law Firms, Legal Ethics, Trials & Litigation, States, Utah Tue, 10 Jul 2012 10:24:43 -0500 39602.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/prominent_utah_attorney_is_stabbed_steven_killpack_former_public_defender/ A prominent Utah defense attorney was stabbed in the vicinity of his home on Thursday morning, which is not far from his law office. Steven B. Killpack, 63, survived, and authorities are hoping he will be able to tell them more about what happened. He walked about half a block,… Criminal Justice, Public Defenders, States, Utah Thu, 05 Jul 2012 14:12:16 -0500 39557.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/mom_who_cut_teen_daughters_hair_in_court_complains_about_judge_do_shame_sen/ A Utah mother who says she felt intimidated by a state-court judge into agreeing on the spot to cut her 13-year-old daughter's hair in court during a May hearing says she has filed a legal ethics complaint against the judge. Although the complaint hasn't officially been confirmed, Valerie Bruno says… Criminal Justice, Juvenile Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, States, Utah Mon, 25 Jun 2012 18:26:57 -0500 39436.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/feds_raid_utah_law_offices_in_probe_of_loan_modification_work1/ Multiple federal agencies including the FBI, IRS and the office of the inspector general for the Troubled Asset Relief Program raided three offices affiliated with a Utah law firm Tuesday. The U.S. Attorney's office in Utah confirmed the raid on the CC Brown Law Office in Midvale and West Valley… Criminal Justice, White Collar Crime, Law Firms, Real Estate & Property Law, States, Utah Tue, 12 Jun 2012 18:28:43 -0500 39209.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/judges_ethics_appeal_blames_high_warrant_amount_on_misplaced_comma_rather_t/ A Utah judge is appealing a reprimand issued in the belief that he entered a $10,000 cash-only warrant for a woman accused of a minor traffic violation because she was rude to his law clerks. Judge Keith Stoney of West Valley City Justice Court told the Utah Supreme Court the… Judiciary, Legal Ethics, States, Utah Wed, 06 Jun 2012 06:41:52 -0500 39108.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/county_prosecutor_wont_charge_sister_wives_family/ Corrected: Members of the family portrayed in the Sister Wives reality TV show won’t face prosecution in Utah County, Utah. In a motion to dismiss a challenge to the state’s bigamy law, Utah County Attorney Jeff Buhman said his office has adopted a policy that it… Constitutional Law, Criminal Justice, Prosecutors, Family Law, Law in Popular Culture, Law Professors, Media & Communications Law, States, Utah Fri, 01 Jun 2012 06:33:18 -0500 39043.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/ark._ag_cant_sue_law_firm_under_deceptive_trade_practices_statute_states_to/ Reversing a lower court ruling that imposed penalties on an out-of-state law firm for collecting fees on dishonored checks in excess of what is allowed under the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, the state's top court has ruled that its attorney general has no jurisdiction to pursue such a case… Business of Law, Law Practice Management, Government Law, Law Firms, Midsize Firm, Trials & Litigation, Verdicts & Settlements, States, Arkansas, Utah Wed, 28 Mar 2012 12:31:43 -0500 38000.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/utah_attorney_is_disbarred_for_using_122500_settlement_check_for_law_firm/ Suspended in 1993 for misuse of a client trust account, Clayne Corey got no leniency from the Utah Supreme Court on Tuesday. Although a district court judge suggested a stayed suspension would be appropriate, because the attorney "did not intend to cause harm or injury" by depositing a $122,500 settlement… Legal Ethics, Trials & Litigation, Verdicts & Settlements, States, Utah Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:39:54 -0500 37989.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/gulf_war_hero_a_disbarred_lawyer_is_accused_of_participating_in_claimed_54m/ A former lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve who previously made a name for himself as a politician and New Hampshire lawyer, before being disbarred in 2006, is now gaining a high profile in a new arena. David Young, 49, a Green Beret and Gulf War hero, is accused by… Contracts, Government Law, Tort Law, Trials & Litigation, 10th Circuit Court, States, Utah Thu, 15 Mar 2012 11:55:43 -0500 37819.abajournal.com