First Impressions

• Publication year: 2006
• Pages: 7
• Citation: Vol. 19 No. 3 Pg. 7

Utah Bar Journal Volume 19.

Vol. 19, No. 3 - #7. First Impressions

Utah Bar Journal
Volume 19, No. 3
May/June 2006

First Impressions

by Judge Carolyn B. McHugh

"Knowledge and timber shouldn't be

much used till they are seasoned."

Oliver Wendell Holmes

The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table, 1858

Because I agree with Justice Holmes and will not have been on the bench for a year until August 1, 2006, I am somewhat reluctant to share any "pearls of wisdom" at this early juncture. At the urging of my colleague and the Bar Journal's "judicial advisor," Judge Orme, I have acquiesced. There is, however, one advantage to being a rookie. I still identify strongly with those of you on the other side of the bench and am eager to provide whatever information you might find helpful. Thus, I have included my answers to the questions most frequently asked since I made this transition and have also added some observations that might help you to be a more effective appellate advocate

Do The Judges All Read the Briefs or Do They Delegate that to Their Law Clerks?

Yes. Not only does each of the judges on your panel read the briefs, and appendices, and often controlling cases, your briefs are also read by at least one law clerk and one of our staff attorneys. Without exception, each judge on every panel to which I have been assigned has been prepared by the time of oral argument to discuss the matter intelligently during conference

Why Does it Take So Long To Get A Written Decision?

It doesn't. The Court of Appeals strives to render a written decision no more than one year after the Notice of Appeal is filed. We are relatively successful at that. Most of that time runs before the members of the panel assigned to your case ever see the briefs. This period before the briefs are delivered to us includes any time used by preparation of the transcript, extensions, supplementation of the record motions to strike, and rescheduling of oral argument. The panel members receive the briefs on the fifteenth day of the month that is two months prior to the month in which your matter will be heard. According to our internal rules, the assigned author should circulate the initial draft of the decision within ninety days after oral argument, although most opinions circulate much more quickly. Even if the matter is not scheduled for oral argument, we have a date on which it is...