Utah Appellate Report

Torts (Medical Malpractice); Arbitration | Plaintiff filed a lawsuit against Defendants (a medical facility and doctors) for their alleged negligence in failing to properly diagnose and treat her. Nearly six months later, Plaintiff moved to compel arbitration pursuant to the

Criminal Law; Constitutional Law (Fifth Amendment) | Defendant appealed various convictions based on the allegations of Ex-Girlfriend, arguing, among other things, that his Fifth Amendment rights had been violated by the State and its witness’s commentary on Defendant’s refusal to

Property Law | Owners in a subdivision disputed regarding the size of a Special Use Area easement burdening one of the lots. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Defendants, ruling that the amended CC&Rs governing the subdivision

Criminal Law; Evidence | Defendant appealed his multiple convictions for aggravated sexual abuse, arguing that the court applied the wrong legal standard in excluding as privileged certain mental health records belonging to one of the alleged victims.

Criminal Law | Martinez appeals his jury convictions on one count of rape and three counts of sodomy on a child. He raises issues surrounding a deadlock instruction, admission of a CJC interview, and counsel’s failure to object to evidence

Evidence | Wallace was killed when a semi-truck mirror hit his head as he walked in the street past midnight. His body was found on the fog line of the right shoulder. He was intoxicated.

Property | Walker subdivided his lot into two smaller lots, relying on the 1978 amendment to the original restrictive covenants (CC&Rs) governing lot division in his community. Some of his neighbors opposed the division, citing the original 1940 CC&Rs as

Criminal Law (Justice Court); Statutory Interpretation | Ms. Kamoe pled guilty to a single count of impaired driving pursuant to a negotiated plea bargain. Ms. Kamoe then appealed her conviction to the district court, but withdrew her appeal after the

Tort (Wrongful Death); Statutory Interpretation | After Ms. Feldman drowned in a creek at a Salt Lake City park, her husband and adult children (Plaintiffs) brought a wrongful death lawsuit against the City. The City moved to dismiss based

Civil; Torts | Plaintiffs (Husband and Wife) brought a products liability claim against the retailer and distributor of their vehicle, contending that defects in the vehicle caused them to suffer more severe injuries than they otherwise would have when a

Family Law; Contempt | The parties in this case, Father and Mother, were married with children, but following a divorce, the parties to agree to the appointment of a special master to resolve any related disputes. Mother filed a show

Criminal Law | Following a ten-day trial, a jury convicted the defendant of murder and aggravated robbery. The primary issue at trial was the identity of the shooter.

Criminal Law; Fourth Amendment | A police officer approached the defendant as he appeared to be asleep behind the wheel of a car parked in a parking lot. The officer opened the door of the car, then saw illegal contraband.

Family Law: Custody Modification | A company purchased a building and the associated land near downtown Salt Lake City and converted the building to an office. The County valued the property at $885,890 for tax purposes. The company appealed to

Family Law: Custody Modification | Parent had primary physical custody of Child. Parent did not pick up Child from school because Parent was in the hospital, and Child missed several days of school. Father petitioned to modify custody, asserting that

Attorney Discipline | An Attorney faced criminal charges for failing to properly file withholding tax returns, remit withholding taxes, and submit monies collected from his employees in payment of their income tax obligations. In response to these charges, the OPC

Workers’ Compensation | Israel Velasco seriously injured while working. His finger was eventually amputated after he was cleared to begin working again. Velasco held various jobs before his finger required amputation, but he requested temporary permanent disability from the date

Property; Civil Procedure | In a case with a complex backstory, Appellants sued various parties, seeking to set aside the sale of Property, which had been sold at a trustee’s sale. The district court granted a motion to dismiss and

Municipal Law | Plaintiff appealed for a conditional use permit to operate a public parking lot. The town council denied his application, the town’s Appeal Authority affirmed, and the district court upheld the Appeal Authority’s decision.

Criminal Law | On appeal, Defendant argued that after he pleaded guilty to sexual offenses, his counsel provided ineffective assistance in failing to object to the sentencing court’s consideration of a psychosexual evaluation from a previous sexual offense.

Property Law; Statutory Interpretation; Civil Procedure | Cougar Canyon acquired an interest in Property that was encumbered by a lien held by Zion and sought to partition the property. In Zion’s answer, it asserted it had a lien but it

Contract Law (Insurance) | M.A. sued Regence, alleging among other things that the company had breach the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing when it denied her pre-authorization request for insurance coverage for a course of treatment. The

Liens and Attorney Fees | Two contractors worked for a development. The contractors both filed preliminary notices of construction liens on the development, and after the contractors finished performing work and believed they had not been paid, they recorded several

Employment | An employee was injured at work and filed a workers’ compensation claim. Over the course of several months, the employee missed work to attend physical therapy and to attend to his injury.

Criminal | The defendant got into a fight with Victim. Prior to trial, the defendant’s counsel’s diligence in representing the defendant was less than exemplary, missing several hearings and not responding to discovery requests.

Criminal | Prison guards found a shank—cut from a bedframe—hidden in a shoe in a prison cell occupied by Gallegos and his cellmate. At trial for possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person, the jury heard that Gallegos

Property | SFUR and UDAK Properties, LLC, both owned parcels of land in a shopping center in Spanish Fork. SFUR contested UDAK’s status as a “Responsible Owner” according to an amended declaration defining Responsible Owners as those “with a combined

Criminal | Collier groped Co-worker in two incidents. Both incidents were caught on video tape, but both tapes fail to clearly show the sexual contact.

Property | Canyon Creek and UDAK Properties, LLC, both owned parcels of land in a shopping center in Spanish Fork. Canyon Creek contested UDAK’s status as a “Responsible Owner” according to an amended declaration defining Responsible Owners as those “with

Criminal | A police officer stopped in a neighborhood in response to a call about a loud party and tried to stop several cars driving down the road. The officer believed that the defendant ignored his signal to stop.

Criminal | The defendant entered an apartment where his girlfriend was staying, pointed a gun at her, and told her to leave. The girlfriend did not leave until after the defendant left and a friend in the apartment told the

Administrative | A company lost a bid on a government contract for inmate telephone services. The company sought to appeal the decision, but the board dismissed that appeal because the company failed to attach a copy of the underlying decision

Criminal | Before the defendant stood trial for raping two fifteen-year-old girls, the district court ruled that the State would not be permitted to introduce evidence of the defendant’s SAC, swastika, and “Supreme White Power” tattoos at trial, among others.

Divorce | Jerry and Yvonne were married for nearly twenty-three years. Before marrying, Jerry had paid off his dental practice.

Criminal Procedure | Keith Terry and his ex-wife argued over whose turn it was to pick up the children from school in front of their son. When ex-wife went to the passenger side door of his Jeep, Terry put his

Contract | Greyhound entered into a lease agreement with UTA, where UTA agreed to take responsibility for snow removal and Greyhound agreed to purchase an insurance policy. A passenger slipped on a snow-covered stair, and Greyhound paid damages to the

Medical Malpractice | A patient underwent a knee replacement by a Utah doctor, signing a document signifying that he understood the risks of nonhealing, infection, and amputation. After the surgery, the patient got an infection in his knee replacement, and

Forfeiture | In 1998, law enforcement seized property from the Pinders’ ranch while the Pinders’ Son was being investigated for murder. Son was convicted in 2000, but the State refused to returned the seized property.

Criminal | A boy was shot in a drive-by shooting. The State charged the defendant as a party to the shooting.

Criminal | Ten-year-old Child told the police that the defendant had touched her on her breast and buttocks. The defendant told the police that he had no recollection of touching Child.

Criminal | Thornock and an accomplice held up a Super 8 Motel one night using stolen materials from a local Walmart. In an interview, Thornock told police he doesn’t “steal, I kill.”

Civil Procedure | After litigating claims of defamation, et al, relating to statements of dissatisfaction Eskamami publicly made against Auto-Owners, Auto-Owners dismissed its defamation claims, acknowledging it could prove no damages. As a part of those proceedings, the district court

Statute of Limitations | A mother’s daughter drank alcohol at a bar and got into an accident. The mother commenced a lawsuit against the bar.

Criminal | The State charged the defendant with sexually abusing his younger cousin one evening while the defendant was drinking. After a jury convicted the defendant, the defendant raised several issues on appeal.

Criminal | Haugen entered a plea in abeyance to one count of felony theft and stipulated to pay $177,380 as part of restitution. But before he paid the restitution in full, he pleaded guilty to two charges in a Colorado

Adoption | In an interstate adoption, Mother placed Child with two Utah residents. Mother and Adoptive Parents were required to comply with the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC).

Property | The owners received a loan to purchase property. When the owners defaulted on payment, the lender filed a default notice in October 2009 and scheduled a trustee’s sale.

Criminal | The defendant shot the victim in the head once during a struggle and told the police that he acted in self-defense. The State charged him with murder and felony discharge of a firearm.

Workers’ Compensation | An employee injured his knee at work and sought workers’ compensation benefits. The employer moved to compel the employee to attend a medical evaluation, and the administrative law judge (ALJ) granted that motion.

Criminal: Post-Conviction | In 2016, Jones filed a pro se petition for post-conviction relief in which he raised numerous grounds for relief. The State moved for summary judgment on every ground.

Family: Divorce, Torts | Jensen and Cannon were married in the eighties and divorced in the nineties. In the two-thousands, Jensen brought a claim of fraudulent nondisclosure against Cannon when she discovered a property and an option contract that Cannon

Criminal | The defendant crashed his car making a drifting video. Thereafter, in the presence of Friend, he called his insurance company to change his policy.

Criminal | The defendant kidnapped two men in a drug deal gone wrong; he forced one man to shoot another and then directed the others to cover up the crimes. The defendant was convicted on two counts of aggravated kidnapping,

Criminal | The State charged the defendant with aggravated robbery for stealing money from a store at gunpoint. At trial, the defendant sought to strike a juror for cause because the juror had been robbed at gunpoint years earlier, but

Criminal | The defendant raped his wife’s friend in his living room while she pretended to be sleeping next to her sleeping children. At trial, he claimed she traded sex acts for methamphetamine and when he refused to have sex

Criminal | The defendant stole over $1,000 of merchandise and flashed a knife at store employees as he attempted to leave the store. He was convicted of aggravated robbery.

Criminal | Lopez and Nielsen were separately charged with sexually abusing children (ages five and twelve). In both cases, at the preliminary hearing stage, the State sought to meet its burden of persuasion through admitting their Child Justice Center interviews

Criminal | The defendant posted a Craigslist ad looking for a person who was willing to have rough sex with him, and a woman responded. After sending the defendant compromising videos and the defendant threatening to send the videos to

Civil – Medical Malpractice; Statute Of Limitations | A patient experienced cardiac arrest and brain damage after an abdominal surgery, and years later, he filed a malpractice claim against the hospital. A jury found the patient’s lawsuit was barred by

Civil Procedure: Summary Judgement Affidavits | A passenger rode in the driver’s car, and the driver entered an intersection and was hit by another car, injuring the passenger. The passenger sued the driver.

Business Litigation | Several entities entered into an operating agreement to form Royal Aloha, a company that would internationally distribute coffee. The entities’ relationship soured, and they eventually sued each other.

Arbitration | The plaintiff business partner sued two other defendant business partners for breach of contract, breaching the duty of good faith and fair dealing, and seeking dissolution of the company. The defendants sought to compel arbitration of the plaintiff’s

Takings | UDOT condemned a piece of undeveloped land as part of a large property to mitigate the environmental impacts of the Legacy Parkway Project. The landowner challenged the condemnation, arguing that the taking was not for public use.

Post-Conviction Relief | The defendant was convicted and sentenced to death and filed a series of post-conviction relief (PCRA) petitions. In his last petition, he argued that under Atkins v. Virginia, 536 U.S.304 (2002), it was cruel and unusual punishment

Expert Testimony | Arreguin was injured while installing an exit sign on the shoulder of I-15. At the time of the accident, there were no traffic control measures in place at the accident site. He sued Hadco for failing to

Criminal | The defendant shot a person after his Friend beat him up. Officers arrived on the scene moments later, and an affidavit claimed that the officers saw Friend holding a gun and standing over the victim.

Workers’ Compensation | Employee was injured at work when a 300-pound metal trestle fell on him and pinned him. He was awarded permanent partial disability after he developed a consistent limp and had limited ability to participate in physical activities.

Parental Rights Termination | The Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS) filed a petition alleging Mother’s children were abused, neglected, and dependent. Following counsel’s advice, Mother admitted certain allegations in the State’s petition under rule 34(e) of the Utah

Employment / Statute of Limitations | A city employee resigned on June 28, 2017, because of illegal conduct in his department. He filed a notice of claim under the Governmental Immunity Act on October 25, 2017.

Criminal | A detective went undercover and solicited sex from the defendant. Subsequently, the State charged the defendant with a class A misdemeanor for sexual solicitation.

Civil Stalking Injunction; First Amendment | Petitioner sought a civil stalking injunction against Neighbor. Petitioner sought the injunction because Neighbor objected to her running a residential treatment program for young women out of her home, and as a result, had

Adoption | Conceived on the Cheyenne River Sioux reservation and born in Utah, BB was placed for adoption by birth mother through subterfuge and against birth father’s wishes. After a first appeal in the Utah Supreme Court in 2017, the

First Amendment | Mr. Acumen, a State Central Committee (SCC) member of the Utah Republican Party (URP) (Committee Member), sent emails and made social media posts calling those who voted for the passage of a certain Bylaw “criminal.” He further

Criminal | Defendant and defendant’s wife fed defendant’s autistic son a restricted diet for nearly a decade. They would lock his door to keep him from eating.

Contract | Appellant sued Catania for breach of contract. Catania counterclaimed, arguing that appellant owed him $25,000.

Family | Years ago, the district court terminated appellant’s alimony order under the statutory language of Utah Code section 30-3-5-(10), and appellant successfully appealed. This time the district court terminated her alimony order under the terms of her divorce decree,

Adoption | Birth father’s biological daughter was born to his girlfriend, who placed her in the care of adoptive parents. Birth father initially objected to the adoption, but then signed a relinquishment of parental rights, expressing his peace over the

Adoption | Adoptive parents petitioned to adopt KTB. Mother filed an answer to the petition instead of the required memorandum supporting intervention under section 110 of the Adoption Act.

Property | Two neighbors with bordering property lines disputed over relocating a wall along their border. Gibson removed a fence and erected a retaining wall two feet north, but still within his deeded property.

Partnerships and Contracts | A partnership dissolved, and years later the former partner in the partnership obtained a loan from TNE. The partner secured that loan with a trust deed on buildings owned by the partnership.

Criminal | The defendant was convicted of raping his girlfriend’s fourteen-year-old Daughter. After the rape, the defendant told the Daughter he would rape her younger sisters if she told anyone.

Criminal | The defendant was convicted of four counts of sodomy on a child. The Utah Court of Appeals reversed for two reasons.

Criminal | The State charged the defendant with kidnapping, burglary, and aggravated sexual assault, among other things, for interactions he had with his wife. The jury convicted the defendant. The court of appeals affirmed the convictions.

Criminal | Defendant pleaded guilty to the aggravated murder of his ex-wife and after a penalty phase trial, he was sentenced by a jury to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He appealed, claiming that the penalty phase

Tort | A driver hit the plaintiff’s car. The plaintiff sued the driver. At trial, the plaintiff’s chiropractor testified that she had a herniated disc, a permanent back injury, and that treatment failed to get her range of motion

Tax | Appellant did not pay taxes for three years while he worked overseas because he did not believe he was considered to be domiciled in Utah at that time. The Utah Tax Commission ordered him to pay taxes, interest,

Family | The appellant cohabited with her boyfriend for over twenty years. They were reputed to be husband and wife and owned joint property and accounts.

Expungement | The district court found that it was not in the public interest to grant the defendant’s request to expungement his criminal charges and arrest record after his unlawful-sexual-conduct case was put on hold. The Utah Supreme Court affirmed

Criminal | The defendant pulled another teenager who was yelling “no” and “stop” into a secluded area by her feet while his penis was out of his pants but covered by his shirt. The teenager ultimately ran away.

Criminal | State v. Featherson, 2020 UT App 106 (Christiansen Forster, J.)The defendant pleaded guilty, and during the sentencing hearing, the State breached the plea agreement. On appeal, the State conceded error, and the defendant’s appellate counsel asked for remand

Criminal | Police arrested the defendant and told him that a complainant said he had inappropriately touched her. After invoking his Miranda rights, the defendant refuted that allegation and offered an explanation.

Civil Procedure | Plaintiff sued Defendants (the car dealership and its bond company) after she discovered a truck she had purchased did not have the features the dealership had purportedly agreed to provide. Plaintiff did not serve initial disclosures until

Civil Procedure | In the underlying litigation between a plaintiff and two defendants, Trapnell purchased the plaintiff’s interest in the litigation after the final judgment, but before the time to appeal had expired. Trapnell then filed a notice under rule

Civil Procedure | Appellant’s lawsuit against appellee was dismissed after appellant failed to respond to four notices over the course of three-and-a-half months. Appellant moved for relief from the judgment under rule 60(b)(1) of the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure,

Criminal | After a trial, a man was convicted of aggravated burglary and attempted aggravated murder. On appeal, he argued that his convictions should have merged and, alternatively, that the merger statute is unconstitutional.

Criminal | A man and the defendant got drunk together one evening. The man passed out. When he woke up, the man found his pants around his ankles and lube around his anus.

Protective Order | Brewer filed an objection to a commissioner’s permanent protective order 14 days after the order was entered. The district court dismissed the objection as untimely.

Criminal | During his hearing where he pleaded guilty to murder, the defendant made two statements in Spanish that he was defending himself against the victim when he shot the victim. After a statement from defense counsel, the district court

Criminal | After a three-year-old child accused the defendant of showing her pornographic material, putting his “wee-wee” on her “no-no,” and putting his finger “under her bum,” the defendant was charged with and convicted of rape of a child, aggravated

Child Welfare | The juvenile courts terminated Father’s parental rights, and in so doing addressed whether termination was “strictly necessary”—a phrase that had been added to the termination statute, Utah Code § 78A-6-507. Father appealed, and the Utah Court of

Civil Procedure | After years of vigorous child custody litigation, Young and Hagel mediated a new issue. After the mediation, Hagel’s counsel withdrew without a court order, incorrectly representing that no motions were pending before the court.

Criminal | After a six-day jury trial, the jury acquitted the defendant of ten charges, but convicted him of child endangerment, lewdness involving a child, and aggravated child sexual abuse. The Utah Court of Appeals affirmed, holding:

Criminal | The defendant ran a red light and hit another car, causing the death of a passenger. After a trial and an appeal, the defendant was tried again by jury, and the jury convicted him of negligent homicide.

Criminal | A defendant pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and burglary, and after successfully completing his probation, sought a reduction in the level of his convictions under Utah Code § 76-3-402. The district court denied the motion.

Criminal | In his plea agreement, the defendant agreed to pay restitution for his dismissed charges. At sentencing, the defendant spoke to the court and the defendant’s counsel informed the court of the concerns of the defendant’s mother.

Civil Stalking Injunction | Brian Hardy went to a therapist’s office to see if his ex-wife, Karen, was taking their child to a therapist that he did not approve of. Brian observed Karen and took two photographs.

Water | A landowner owned a lot and a water share in that lot. He signed over the water share to Kincaid, and Big Cottonwood issued a new water share certificate to Kincaid

Tort | The plaintiff was hit in the head by a flagpole thrown into crowded bleachers by another student while the plaintiff was attending an assembly on school grounds. No employee provided medical care or called an ambulance.

Statutes of Limitation | Mitchell asserted civil claims against Roberts, asserting that Roberts had sexually abused Mitchell in 1981. Mitchell’s claims had expired under the original statute of limitations, but she argued that her claims were revived when the legislature

Property: Eminent Domain | In 2009, UDOT took a company’s property under eminent domain. The company sold its remaining property several years later, and the property was developed.

Family | A husband moved to modify the divorce decree to terminate his alimony obligation. Although the wife attempted to find attorneys, she did not file an answer on time, and the husband moved for a default judgment.

Procedure | Honnen Equipment (Honnen) rented machinery to Daz Management (Daz). It filed suit for damages against Daz’s owner, who was found not liable at a bench trial.

Procedure | Ron Griffin brought a malpractice claim against Snow Christensen & Martineau (SCM). SCM moved to dismiss the complaint.

Juvenile Delinquency | The State charged the young defendant with two counts of sexual abuse of a child, alleging that the defendant touched another child’s genitals twice. At trial, the defendant presented evidence that cast significant doubt on the dates

Workers’ Compensation | Employee was a professional truck driver who had preexisting conditions in her right knee and lower back when she started working for Employer. While working for Employer, Employee’s semi-truck caught on fire and Employee quickly exited the

Medical Malpractice | In early 2011, during lung surgery, a patient suffered a brain injury and emerged from surgery unresponsive. She died a week later.

Criminal | The defendant was CEO of a small tech company that eventually went under. He thereafter created a new tech company with a friend providing the same service.

Criminal | The defendant pleaded guilty to stalking his ex-girlfriend with the understanding that he would not serve any jail time and would, instead, be sentenced to probation. The district court sentenced him to jail, and the defendant appealed, raising

Criminal | The State charged the defendant with possessing child pornography. At trial, the State admitted testimony of the defendant’s marital sexual activities and photographs of legal erotica, noting that this evidence was relevant because the defendant had unique sexual

Criminal | A district court issued a temporary ex parte protective order that was personally served on the defendant the same day. The defendant failed to appear at a hearing a little over two weeks later when the court entered

Workers’ Compensation | An employee-seamstress had preexisting osteoarthritis in her knee. One day at work, the employee stepped on a sewing machine pedal with slippery cloth on it, twisting her foot and causing pain in her knee.

Criminal | The defendant pleaded guilty, did not seek to withdraw his guilty plea, and was sentenced within the statutory range. On appeal, the Utah Court of Appeals informed the defendant that the case was being considered for summary disposition.

Criminal | After the defendant’s ex-girlfriend kicked him out and locked the door, the defendant forcibly opened the door and assaulted the ex-girlfriend in front of her child. The defendant was convicted of assault, domestic violence in the presence of

Torts | A mulch fire occurred on the property of Diamond Tree, following at least two other fires the week before, as well a warning from the Health Department that the mulch pile was too high. Firefighters, including David Ipsen,

Standing | The ACLU, the Disability Law Center, and the Utah Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys sought relief on behalf of all individuals in criminal custody throughout the State who are at risk of contracting COVID-19. No individual inmate was

Procedure | The Utah Legislature amended portions of Utah’s tax code that established the methodology for determining the property tax obligations of airlines operating within the state. Several counties sued the State, arguing that the amended provisions violated the Utah

Legal Malpractice | Cougar Canyon obtained a $4 million judgment against Cypress. After losing its appeal, Cypress sued its law firm.

Criminal | After a string of burglaries in Salt Lake County, the police traced a stolen iPad to a McDonald’s parking lot. One theft victim provided a description of the defendant.

Constitutional | After receiving complaints about a wind farm’s violations of a conditional use permit, a planning commission decided to not revoke the permit, but it did so without allowing another business to participate in the revocation proceedings in a

Constitutional | A Trust owned a piece of land in the Albion Basin, a part of unincorporated Salt Lake County. The Trust sought to develop the land, but, even though the land was located within the water-service area of Salt

Family | A man and a woman lived together in a romantic relationship from 1999 till 2015. They had two children and agreed that the woman should stay home with the children while the man pursued his career.

Criminal | A woman claimed the defendant raped her one night in his car; he claimed the sex was consensual. Both testified at trial.

Criminal | The defendant poked a wire from a sprinkler into a doorknob of a house. The homeowner told the defendant to leave, but he ignored her and kept jiggling the wire in the doorknob.

Torts | An attorney sued a law firm and its partners, asserting that the firm did not pay him fees that he was entitled to after the firm settled a large lawsuit. At trial, the attorney’s expert testified—over the law

Constitutional Law | The appellant was convicted of three class B misdemeanors in justice court. He appealed his convictions by invoking his statutory right to “a hearing de novo in the district court.”

Evidence | A patient had a disorder that caused spasticity, and she had an implanted medication pump to control the spasticity. When she suffered severe shaking in her legs, a hospital treated her over a two-day period, first giving her

Criminal | The defendant, leader of a local gang, hosted a party on Friday the Thirteenth. A fight broke out, and multiple people were stabbed.

Criminal | The defendant got in a scuffle with a police officer at a hospital and was eventually charged with and convicted of disarming a peace officer. He contested his conviction, arguing that insufficient evidence supports a required finding that

Criminal | The defendant, a martial arts and survival training “Shen lord,” entered into a sexual relationship with his seventeen-year-old student. The student eventually became the defendant’s third putative wife.

Contract | An LLC entered into a licensing agreement with a gym. Years later, one of the members of the LLC entered into a franchising agreement with the gym and sold it.

Civil Stalking | A woman sought a civil stalking injunction against a man in 2016. The injunction stated that it lasted three years and could only be changed by the court. T

Property: Prescriptive Easements | A neighbor used a road crossing the landowner’s property for over 20 years. A company purchased the neighbor’s land and continued using the road.

Property: Prescriptive Easements | A neighbor and a landowner disputed whether the neighbor had established a prescriptive easement over the landowner’s property. On summary judgment, the district court determined that the neighbors had established a prescriptive easement, but the case

Criminal | One night, a group of men attacked the victim. One of the men stabbed the victim several times. Several eyewitnesses saw the attack and identified the defendant as the stabber. The State charged the defendant with attempted murder.

Estates | Father died, leaving two known children who were his heirs. Several years after his death, a previously unknown child—Son—intervened in Father’s probate action to assert his right as an heir in the case.

Criminal | The defendant was accused by Victim of rape and forcible sodomy. At trial, counsel either did not object or withdrew his objections to the following testimony: Victim twice testified that the sexual activity happened after Nunes got out

Criminal | The defendant was convicted of sodomizing his wife’s granddaughter. After trial, the defendant filed a motion to arrest judgment alleging three instances of ineffective assistance of counsel.

Estate | Husband opened several retirement accounts through his employer and named First Wife as the primary beneficiary and Brother as the contingent beneficiary. Husband and First Wife divorced, and Husband married Second Wife.

Criminal | The defendant was charged with aggravated burglary, criminal mischief, and assault. To establish the elements of the crimes at trial, the State relied primarily on a 911 phone call from the defendant’s father claiming he and another son

Criminal | Victim was attacked in his garage by two individuals, including one using brass knuckles, who was identified as the defendant. The defendant was convicted of aggravated burglary and aggravated assault.

Criminal | The defendant stole a case of beer and hit the store clerk with his car in the parking lot as he left. A detective investigated the incident and wrote in a report that the store’s surveillance footage did

Procedure | Local governments filed suits against the opioid manufacturers in several judicial districts across Utah. The first suit was filed in the third district.

Family | A couple divorced in 2015. Ex-husband’s alimony was set based upon his income at the time. He thereafter lost his job and petitioned to modify his alimony and child support obligations.

Criminal | Officers relied on information from the Utah Criminal Justice Information System (UCJIS) that the car the defendant was driving was not insured. A representative from Insure-Rite, the company providing the information, testified at trial that it told the

Criminal | A wheelchair-bound defendant went to two stores and wore jeans with the crotch cut out and sheer mesh fabric on top of his genitals. Customers saw the defendant and his exposed genitals.

Criminal | The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole declined to set a parole date for a Utah prison inmate who had been convicted of attempted child kidnapping and kidnapping because he refused to participate in the prison sex offender

Criminal | The defendant stole a car from the seller’s father in Weber County and drove the car to Utah County. Utah County charged the defendant with theft by receiving stolen property, and the probable cause statement attached to the

Criminal | The defendant pulled into a parking lot that was frequented by men seeking prostitutes. He was in his car for less than one minute before an undercover officer approached him and solicited him.

Criminal | In an online ad, the defendant solicited a sexual encounter between “dad” and “son.” “Son” is a term in the gay community expressing the desire to meet someone younger, but not necessarily a minor.

Criminal | The State charged the defendant with retail theft. At trial, the defendant testified that he did not plead guilty to retail theft because he did not do it.

Contempt | An employee worked for an employer and signed a noncompete agreement. The employer terminated the employee. Upon discovering that the employee was still providing services to several of the employer’s clients—contrary to the noncompete agreement—the employer sued the

Child Welfare | DFCS removed Child from Mother’s care and placed Child in a temporary home placement with Father. Two months into that placement, Father was arrested for driving under the influence.

Workers’ Compensation | An employee drove a semitruck for over one year and developed a pressure ulcer on his foot that led to surgery. The employee had a preexisting condition—peripheral neuropathy—but he drove the semitruck for 11 hours per day,

Procedure | A property owner sued a bank for quiet title to a property and unjust enrichment. The bank moved to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim under Utah R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) because the owner’s claims

Employment | An employee filed a complaint with the Utah Occupational Safety and Health Division alleging that his termination violated the Utah Occupational Safety and Health Act (UOSHA) because the employer terminated him for filing a UOSHA complaint. While his

Contract | A property owner borrowed money from Instant Mortgage Lending Inc. (IML) and that loan was memorialized in a promissory note. The loan was secured by a trust deed that listed Instant Funding—not IML—as the beneficiary but also defined

Criminal | A defendant drove his wife in his car and hit her. The wife exited the car when it slowed, but she got back in the car because she wanted to avoid law enforcement and she believed the defendant

Criminal | After an argument with his father, the defendant drove away from home. The father drove after the defendant and stopped him.

Child Welfare | Mother had her children removed after one child tested positive for drugs. Originally the juvenile court set the goal as reunification, but when Mother did not comply with the reunification plan, the court set the goal as

Criminal | The police found the defendant slumped over in his car while his car was in neutral and stopped in a left-turn lane. After awaking him, the defendant admitted to taking alprazolam (Xanax) and failed the two balance-based field

Child Welfare | After Mother’s and Father’s divorce, Mother was awarded sole custody of their two children. But after Mother overdosed, the children were removed from Mother’s care. Initially the court ordered reunification services. But when Mother did not fully

Tax | An individual did not file state tax returns for several years. After the Tax Commission informed the individual of the tax deficiencies and the individual responded by demanding that the Commission provide proof that she was required to

Employment | A government employer terminated a veteran employee. After a days-long hearing, a hearing officer from the Career Service Review Office reviewed the termination and upheld it.

Workers’ Compensation | In 2002, an employee was injured at work. In 2014, he applied for a hearing on a request for surgery stemming from that injury and a claim for permanent total disability benefits.

Workers’ Compensation | In 1983, an employee was injured at work and started receiving a static disability payment of $241 per week for the remainder of his life, as was statutorily required. But the legislature amended the law in 1988

Torts | The plaintiff tripped over a piece of rebar protruding five inches from a park strip. The rebar was rusted and had been nicked several times, and some of the nicks were clean and others were rusted.