Sen. Hatch Introduces Utah Nominee Parrish to the Senate Judiciary Committee
Washington, D.C.—Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, former chairman and current member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, delivered the following remarks while introducing Utah Supreme Court Justice Jill Parrish to the Senate Judiciary Committee, prior to her confirmation hearing for a federal district judgeship:
“Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased today to introduce to the committee an outstanding nominee to fill a vacancy on the U.S. District Court in Utah. Justice Jill Parrish currently serves on the Utah Supreme Court and during her 12 years on our state’s highest court has participated in approximately 900 cases that resulted in a written opinion. She is a well-known and widely respected leader in the Utah legal community and I am certain that she will be a great asset to the federal bench.”
Justice Parrish served in the Utah Supreme Court for 12 years after being nominated by Governor Leavitt in 2003. Prior to her appointment she served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Civil Division of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah, where she supervised the Financial Litigation Unit. She is a member of the Utah Judicial Council and serves as chair of the State Law Library Oversight Committee.
The full remarks as prepared for delivery appear below:
Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased today to introduce to the committee an outstanding nominee to fill a vacancy on the U.S. District Court in Utah.
Justice Jill Parrish currently serves on the Utah Supreme Court. During her 12 years on our state’s highest court, she has participated in approximately 900 cases that resulted in a written opinion.
She is a well-known and widely respected leader in the Utah legal community and I am certain that she will be a great asset to the federal bench.
Mr. Chairman, I have participated in the appointment of three-quarters of the judges who have ever served on the U.S. District Court in Utah.
That experience has given me a sense, both personally and professionally, of the kind of individual who will serve well on the federal bench.
That experience gives me every reason to strongly recommend Justice Jill Parrish for this appointment.
The United States has the most respected, most independent judiciary in the world.
We expect that nominees to the federal bench have a record of accomplishment in their chosen area of legal expertise.
I am struck, however, at how Justice Parrish has done this in so many areas and brings such a broad range of experience to this appointment.
She has established a record of excellence both before and behind the bench, in both state and federal court, in the private and public sectors, and in both trial and appellate courts.
The American Bar Association unanimously gave Justice Parrish its highest well qualified rating.
Here is how the ABA describes what it takes to get this rating:
“[T]he prospective nominee must be at the top of the legal profession in his or her legal community; have outstanding legal ability, breadth of experience, and the highest reputation for integrity; and demonstrate the capacity for judicial temperament.”
I think that says it all.
I want to thank Senator Lee, who is not only my colleague on this committee but also my partner in representing our great state and in recommending the best candidates for judicial appointment.
We agree that Justice Jill Parrish is a great nominee to the U.S. District Court and I strongly recommend her swift and unanimous confirmation.
