Article I

• Citation: Vol. 28 No. 1 Pg. 12
• Publication year: 2015
• Pages: 12
• topic: Civil Procedure

Article I Vol. 28 No. 1 Pg. 12 Utah Bar Journal February, 2015

January, 2015.

A Judge's View of Procedural Fairness

David Roth, J.

I became a trial judge in 1974 and retired in 1992. From 1992 until 2010, 1 worked as a Senior Judge, an arbitrator, and a mediator. In thirty-six years of working in dispute resolution, I never once heard or read the words "Procedural Fairness."

Judicial education was aimed at teaching judges how to make correct rulings. We were taught how to find the facts, apply the law, and make the right decision. We took courses and attended seminars on evidence, civil procedure, criminal procedure, search and seizure, contracts, constitutional law, family law, and more. I don't recall a single seminar entitled "Procedural Fairness."

I think most of us to some degree knew what Procedural Fairness was. We just didn't have a name for it and didn't talk about it. Most of us knew that we were hired to make correct decisions, but we also knew that the system worked best if people felt they were treated fairly in the process. Most of us learned that it was not enough to be neutral; we also had to demonstrate neutrality. It was not enough to listen. We had to convince people that they had a voice and that we were hearing them. It was not enough to have respect for people; we had to show respect for people. We knew that if we did...