Utah
Utah’s highest court is the Utah Supreme Court. The court has three justices, one associate chief justice, and one chief justice, who is chosen by majority vote of the members of the court for four-year terms. (Source: Utah Constitution)
Judicial Selection
The governor nominates a Utah Supreme Court justice from a list provided by a judicial nominating commission. The nominee must be confirmed by a majority of the state senate. After at least three years on the court, a justice may stand for a 10-year term in an unopposed yes/no retention vote at the time of Utah’s next general election. Justices may seek additional terms in the same retention process. To fill an interim vacancy, the governor nominates a candidate from a list provided by a judicial nominating commission. The nominee must be confirmed by a majority of the state senate. There are no term limits. The mandatory retirement age is 75.
State Constitution
Utah’s first and only state constitution was adopted in 1895. As of January 1, 2022, it had 129 amendments. (Source: Council of State Governments)
Filters
The Role of History and Tradition in State Court Abortion Cases
Some state courts weighed historical evidence and found abortion rights protections, diverging from the U.S. Supreme Court’s approach in Dobbs.
Resistance to Public Policies Assisting the Poor
Property owners have challenged programs meant to assist vulnerable populations, alleging they are unconstitutional takings of private property for public use.
States, Not the President, Run Elections in America
The administration’s attempts to undermine or interfere with elections run afoul of constitutional delegations of responsibility.
The Extra Hurdle in State Courts to Prove a Statute Violates the U.S. Constitution
Many states require a litigant challenging a statute as violating the U.S. Constitution to prove the statute is unconstitutional “beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Book Excerpt: Impermissible Punishments: How Prison Became a Problem for Democracy
The U.S. prison system violates democratic social orders aiming to lessen racist and class hierarchies. Its development was not inevitable.
The Next Round of Partisan Gerrymandering Fights
An unprecedented cycle of mid-decade redistricting highlights a state-by-state legal patchwork, with significant national implications.
Do State Constitutions Demand a Monopoly for Public Schools?
Courts across the country are considering whether school-choice programs violate state constitutions.
Book Excerpt: Sedition: How America's Constitutional Order Emerged from Violent Crisis
Throughout history, state constitutional drafting has involved failure and violent crisis and has sometimes torn us apart rather than brought us together.