Part-time justice court judges standing for retention in 2016 are required to meet three minimum performance standards adopted by the judicial branch and enacted by the legislature.
Judge Larsen met these standards:
- He participated annually in no less than 30 hours of continuing legal education for each year of his current term;
- He held no cases under advisement for more than two months; and
- He has not been the subject of any public reprimands issued by the Judicial Conduct Commission or the Utah Supreme Court during his term of office.
Based solely on compliance with these standards, the commission recommends retention for Judge Larsen.
Judge Paul K. Larsen was appointed to the Hyrum City Municipal Justice Court in 2012. He had earlier served for 10 years as the Smithfield City justice court judge. He graduated from Utah State University and earned a law degree from Western State University College of Law of San Diego. Judge Larsen served for three years as Director and Education Officer for the Utah Justice Court Association for the First Judicial District. He served five years on the Logan City Planning Commission and serves as Administrative Hearing Examiner for Logan City and as Appeal Authority for Smithfield and Hyrum cities. He enjoys educating civic groups and students about the legal system from a judge’s perspective.