In this appeal, the Utah Court of Appeals was asked to interpret the interplay between the Governmental Immunity Act’s (1) waiver of immunity for injuries proximately caused by the negligent act or omission of a governmental employee and (2) retention…
In this contractual dispute, the defendant argued that the first breach rule excused its non-performance under a royalty payment provision. Giving effect to each part of the contract, the court of appeals held that the defendant could not invoke the first…
Following the mother’s death, a stepfather filed a petition requesting custody of three minor children under Utah’s Custody and Visitation of Persons Other Than Parents Act, which allows a non-family member to seek custody if the biological parent “is absent”…
Under the Plea Withdrawal Statute, a defendant must move to withdraw his or her guilty plea prior to sentencing or pursue relief under the Post-Conviction Remedies Act. In this case, the defendant argued that the Plea Withdrawal Statute infringed upon his right to appeal a…
The juvenile court granted a request for an order of protective supervision, based on its finding that the mother exhibited hatred of and disgust toward the father, which caused emotional harm to the children. Reversing in part and remanding, the…
Two juvenile defendants accused of aggravated sexual assault appealed the denial of a motion to suppress post-Miranda statements to detective. The supreme court held that the juveniles knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently waived their Miranda rights, given the totality of the circumstances, even though parents were not…
In the midst of divorce proceedings, Husband transferred the couple’s marital home to his mother, intending to void Wife’s claim to the home. Before the divorce was finalized, Husband died. At trial, the court held that the transfer was fraudulent, and awarded the home…
The Utah Supreme Court dismissed this appeal for lack of appellate jurisdiction. The timeliness of the notice of appeal hinged on the timeliness of a Rule 59 motion for new trial, which appellant relied on to toll the time for appeal. Appellant had filed…
Plaintiffs asserted a civil rights claim based on a warrantless search of Utah’s prescription drug database in the course of a theft investigation. On appeal, the Tenth Circuit held that a detective who accessed a state-run prescription drug database without a…
