SB 2002 — Appellate Court Jurisdiction Amendments (Utah)
Status / meta
- Bill title: Appellate Court Jurisdiction Amendments (SB 2002)
- Chief sponsor: Sen. Brady Brammer; House sponsor: Rep. Jefferson S. Burton
- Introduced: March 6, 2025 (2025 Second Special Session)
- Utah Code sections amended: 78A-3-102 (Supreme Court); 78A-4-103 (Court of Appeals)
- Fiscal impact: No appropriation; fiscal notes indicate no material impact on state or local government finances.
- Special effective date provided by the bill.
Purpose / intent
- To clarify and reallocate the appellate jurisdiction of Utah’s appellate courts by (1) specifying the Supreme Court’s exclusive, original appellate jurisdiction for certain high‑importance matters; (2) clarifying which matters may be transferred to the Court of Appeals; and (3) making technical and conforming changes to appellate procedure and jurisdictional language.
Key provisions and changes
1. Supreme Court — exclusive/original appellate jurisdiction
- The bill establishes that the Utah Supreme Court has exclusive and original appellate jurisdiction (including interlocutory appeals) over a defined list of matters:
- Judgments of the Court of Appeals and cases certified to the Supreme Court by the Court of Appeals;
- Lawyer discipline and final orders of the Judicial Conduct Commission;
- Interlocutory appeals and appeals involving capital felonies (charges or convictions);
- Appeals from district‑court rulings on legislative subpoenas;
- Appeals of injunctive orders as described in statute (78B-5-1002);
- Election or voting contests and challenges involving the establishment of political district boundaries for elections;
- Retention or removal proceedings for public officers.
- The Supreme Court is prohibited from transferring these categories to the Court of Appeals.
Election/districting appeals — finality rule for appeals
- In cases involving election contests or establishment of political district boundaries, a district‑court judgment is appealable to the Supreme Court even if a party has filed a motion or claim for attorney fees under Rule 73 and the district court has not yet entered a dispositive order on that motion.
Other Supreme Court original appellate jurisdiction (transferable)
- The Supreme Court also has original appellate jurisdiction (including interlocutory appeals) over:
- Final agency actions in formal adjudicative proceedings originating from several specified agencies (Public Service Commission; State Tax Commission; School & Institutional Trust Lands Board; Board of Oil, Gas & Mining; the state engineer; and certain DNR actions);
- Final orders/decrees of district court reviewing informal agency proceedings;
- Final judgments holding federal or state statutes facially unconstitutional;
- Interlocutory appeals and appeals involving first‑degree felonies;
- Orders over which the Court of Appeals lacks appellate jurisdiction.
- Unlike the exclusively reserved categories above, the Supreme Court may transfer these matters to the Court of Appeals.
Procedure and standards
- The Supreme Court retains sole discretion to grant certiorari for Court of Appeals adjudications, but it must review cases certified by the Court of Appeals.
- The Supreme Court’s review of agency adjudicative proceedings must comply with the Utah Administrative Procedures Act (Title 63G, Chapter 4).
Who is affected
- Litigants and lawyers in appellate matters (particularly criminal defendants in serious‑felony and capital cases, parties in election/districting disputes, those challenging statutes’ constitutionality, affected agencies and regulated parties);
- District courts (route and timing of appeals may change);
- The Utah Supreme Court and Court of Appeals (jurisdictional caseload and case routing);
- Administrative agencies listed (appeals from specified agency final actions).
Practical impact
- Centralizes certain high‑profile and constitutionally sensitive appeals in the Supreme Court (e.g., capital cases, election contests, removal/retention of officers), providing clearer, uniform appellate routing for such matters.
- Clarifies when the Supreme Court may (and may not) delegate or transfer cases to the Court of Appeals.
- Minimal fiscal effect is expected; changes are primarily procedural and jurisdictional.
Procedure / timeline
- A special effective date is included in the bill (as provided within the text). No budget appropriation is attached.
