The Utah State Bar is warning that a stack of bills this session could "fundamentally remake” the state’s court system. In particular, they’re concerned about proposed changes to how judges are nominated and retained.
“It's one of the best models in the country,” Utah State Bar Commission President Kim Cordova told reporters on Feb. 3. “The merit-based process of judicial selection, of wanting the very best and the most competent judges on the bench, is something that needs to be fought for, and it needs to be protected.”
Efforts to reform the courts began in 2025, when lawmakers first proposed changes to judicial retention that were ultimately unsuccessful.
This year, possible changes are again before lawmakers, including a pair of constitutional amendments. One would allow lawmakers to call special retention elections for judges who engage in “certain conduct,” and another would let the governor nominate “any qualified candidate” to be a judge instead of names from a vetted list.
Other measures would increase the vote threshold a judge needs to stay on the bench and alter how the judicial performance evaluation commission operates.
Tensions have been on the rise between the state’s legislative and judicial branches after a series of high-profile court decisions on issues like abortion, redistricting and a school voucher program that were not in GOP lawmakers’ favor.
Republicans like Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore say they want greater accountability for the judicial branch.
“I think this just goes towards the idea of more transparency and judicial retention elections,” he said. “If you poll that or ask people, most people don't know what they're doing when it comes to voting on retaining judges.”
Elizabeth Wright, the executive director of the Utah State Bar, reiterated that the bar is not a political organization or special interest group and cannot endorse political candidates or take partisan positions. However, they felt compelled to speak up because, in its determination, these changes “will not benefit the system or the public who is appearing in those courts.”
“The justice system does not belong to judges or lawyers or the legislature or the governor,” Wright said. “It belongs to the people of Utah. Our role as lawyers, as officers of the court today, is to ensure that the reforms proposed to the court strengthen the system, rather than undermine the public confidence in it.”
In Cordova’s view, while a single piece of legislation might not change much, taken together, this year’s court bills represent an attack on the rule of law.
“What we do know is that if you cut away bit by bit into the Constitution and the rule of law, then not only does the judiciary suffer, but our society suffers,” she said. “That's who we are here to protect. We are here to protect the Constitution and our citizens. That's what lawyers do.”
Many of the bills the bar is concerned about have yet to appear in committee.
Cullimore admitted that the proposed changes to the courts were “a lot,” but stopped short of saying which bills he doesn’t support.
“We're going to take a look at these policies as they come across,” he said. “But, you know, we've done a lot over the last couple years. And sometimes I think it's worth letting it play out for a minute.”
The Legislature has already moved fast on other bills about the courts. Gov. Spencer Cox already signed a bill into law to expand the Utah Supreme Court. Another bill to create a special constitutional court to hear challenges to Utah law is before the House. As of Feb. 3, that bill has been substituted to create a panel of existing district court judges in lieu of an entirely new court to hear cases that challenge Utah law.
