Utah Supreme Court Justice Matthew Durrant has been elected to serve a second term as chief justice by a unanimous vote of his fellow justices.
Durrant was appointed to the Utah Supreme Court in January 2000 by Gov. Mike Leavitt. He was selected as chief justice in 2012 when then-Chief Justice Christine Durham stepped down from that role, but chose to stay on the Utah Supreme Court.
Once elected by a vote of the justices, the chief justice serves a four-year term. The chief justice presides over the Utah Supreme Court, as well as the Utah Judicial Council, which oversees the administrative operations of Utah State Courts.
"I feel privileged to work with four colleagues who are not only exemplary jurists, but remarkable human beings. I am deeply honored by the trust they have placed in me," Durrant said in a statement.
Before his appointment to the Utah Supreme Court, Durrant served as a trial judge in the 3rd Judicial District. He was the founding chairman of the Supreme Court's Professionalism Committee and has chaired the Judicial Council's Technology Committee.
In addition, Durrant chaired the Supreme Court Committee charged with the revision of the Code of Judicial Conduct.
He received his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1984, and has taught as an adjunct professor at Brigham Young University's J. Reuben Clark Law School.
Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Chief Justice Matthew Durrant speaks during the press conference in which Utah's Criminal and Juvenile Justice Commission released a package of proposals aimed at reducing the population and costs of the state's prison system, Wednesday, November 12, 2014.
Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune Matthew Durrant, chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court, gives the annual State of the Judiciary address in the Utah House of Representatives Monday January 26.
Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune Matthew Durrant, chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court, gives the annual State of the Judiciary address in the Utah House of Representatives Monday January 26.
Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune Matthew Durrant, chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court, gives the annual State of the Judiciary address in the Utah House of Representatives Monday January 26.
Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune Justice Christine M. Durham, left, Justice Jill N. Parrish and Associate Chief Justice Thomas R. Lee listen to Matthew Durrant, chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court, give the annual State of the Judiciary address in the Utah House of Representatives Monday January 26.
Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune Matthew Durrant, chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court, gives the annual State of the Judiciary address in the Utah House of Representatives Monday January 26.
