Utah Supreme Court chief justice will retire, deepening high court shakeup

Utah’s longest serving state Supreme Court chief justice is retiring after more than 26 years on the high court, including 14 leading the justices.

Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice Matthew B. Durrant will leave the bench Aug. 31, according to a news release from the courts Friday. His departure comes as the state’s highest court undergoes a major shakeup, with two new justices incoming after the Republican-controlled Legislature voted to expand the bench, and following the exit of another justice, Diana Hagen, who faced scrutiny from top GOP lawmakers after the release of a dismissed confidential investigation alleging an affair.

Meanwhile, Justice John Nielsen joined the court in November, replacing Associate Chief Justice John Pearce who stepped down in December. 

Utah’s judiciary has been in the crosshairs of Republican legislators in recent years over decisions in cases involving abortion and redistricting.

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“Serving the people of Utah and working alongside dedicated judges and court employees across the state has been the honor of a lifetime,” Durrant said in the news release. “I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to help strengthen the administration of justice in Utah.”

Durrant, who is 69, joined the Utah Supreme Court in January 2000 when he was appointed by then-Gov. Michael O. Leavitt, and he rose to become chief justice in April 2012, according to the news release. He is credited with helping to modernize and increase public access to the judicial system, including through the creation of the court’s Office of Fairness and Accountability.

Those efforts were praised in a statement released by the Utah State Bar on Friday, as was his commitment to mentoring other attorneys and judges.

“Under his leadership, Utah’s courts pursued practical reforms that expanded access to justice without sacrificing rigor or public trust. He understood that the courthouse must be a place where ordinary people feel the law is working for them, not just a forum for those who can afford to navigate it,” the Bar said. “That conviction shaped his approach to administration, to technology, and to the culture of the court itself.”

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox called Durrant “a deeply respected jurist, consummate public servant, and genuinely extraordinary person” in the release.

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“For decades, he set aside private life and personal gain, devoting himself fully to the people of Utah and to the faithful administration of justice. His integrity, humility, and devotion to public service have left a lasting mark on our state, and Utah is better because he chose to serve,” Cox said.

Durrant graduated from Brigham Young University and received his law degree from Harvard Law School. He served as a trial attorney and judge in Utah’s 3rd District before his appointment to the high court.

Nominees to the Utah Supreme Court are presented to the governor by the Appellate Judicial Nominating Commission — all of the current nominees are men, while the high court had previously had a female-majority bench, with women holding three of the five seats. After the governor makes his selection from the list of candidates, appointees must be confirmed by a majority vote in the Utah Senate.