Christine M. Durham
Encyclopedia
Christine Meaders Durham is the Chief Justice
of the Utah Supreme Court
. She was born on 3 August 1945. Her husband, George Durham, is a pediatrician and they have five children.
Embassy and the family went to French schools and learned French. In the early ‘60s, Durham moved to New England
to attend Wellesley College, a women’s college at the time, where she met her husband, George Durham. She graduated in 1967 with an A.B. with Honors. She then went to Boston College
for law to be near her husband while he finished his undergraduate studies at Harvard. When he was accepted to Duke Medical School, Durham transferred to Duke Law School. She graduated from Duke Law School in 1971. She is now on the Board of Trustees of Duke University, where she is on the Executive Committee and chairs the Faculty, Graduate and Professional Schools Affairs and Honorary Degree Committees. For a personal account of her early life, see Mormon Women: Portraits and Conversations by James N. Kimball and Kent Miles.
’s J. Reuben Clark Law School
until 1978. At this time she formed a partnership with two other lawyers and founded the law firm of Johnson, Durham, & Moxley. In 1980, the firm merged with a larger firm in Salt Lake City. She also occasionally teaches constitutional law
at the University of Utah
’s S. J. Quinney College of Law. Durham is on the Council of the American Law Institute and the American Bar Association
’s Council of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. She is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation
, a member of the American Law Institute
, and serves on the Board of Directors of both the American Judicature Society
and the National Center for State Courts
.
in 1982 http://www.utcourts.gov/judgesbios/showGallery.asp?dist=10&ct_type=S#2918 and became the Chief Justice in April 2002. Her current term will expire in 2014. She became the first female Chief Justice to swear into office a female governor when Olene Walker became Utah’s 15th governor. She has served on the Governor’s Task Force that recommended legislation to implement the 1985 amendment
s to the Judicial Article of the Utah Constitution
. She served on the Utah Constitutional Revision Commission for 12 years. As Chief Justice
, she chairs the Utah Judicial Council which is the administrative governing body of the state court system. She served as the first chair of the Utah Judicial Council’s Education Committee. She was the Founder of the Leadership Institute in Judicial Education. She was part of the Commission on Justice in the 21st Century and the Co-chair of the Committee on Improving Jury Service. She was the first Chair of the Utah State Court’s Public Outreach Committee. From 1986 to 1997 she was the President of the National Association of Women Judges, which organization she founded. She is a former member of the Federal Judicial Conference, where she was on the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Civil Procedure. She is the immediate past President of the Conference of Chief Justices
, and is the first Utahn to be elected to this position. She is the leader of the Coalition for Civic, Character, and Service Learning - a partnership between civic organizations, public education, the judicial branch, and the legal profession to improve education about the justice system in Utah public schools.
presented the award to Durham on 15 November 2007 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.
Chief Justice Roberts said, "Chief Justice Durham has demonstrated her commitment to public service, judicial education, and the cause of justice throughout her 25 years on the Utah Supreme Court. She reflects those qualities that Chief Justice Rehnquist valued during his distinguished career.” President Mary C. McQueen of the National Center for State Courts said Durham was selected because of her “innovative leadership style and her contributions to advancing judicial branch education not only in Utah, but nationally.” Justice Durham is noted for developing interactive education programs in content areas that previously did not have curriculum, such as domestic violence, child witness testimony, and scientific evidence. She has received honorary degrees from the University of Utah
, Weber State University
, Salt Lake Community College
, and the College of Eastern Utah.
of W. A. T., et al, 808 P.2d 1083, 1085 State v. Holm (Utah 1991), Justice Durham protected the civil rights
of polygamists. The decision held that the Utah Constitution does not per se preclude a polygamist family from adopting children. Justice Durham, writing for the 3-2 court, noted, "The fact that our constitution requires the state to prohibit polygamy does not necessarily mean that the state must deny any or all civil rights and privileges to polygamists." She noted that many things are crimes like polygamy
, but we extend civil rights to perpetrators of those crimes. She stated, "It is not the role of the courts to make threshold exclusions dismissing without consideration, for example, the adoption petitions of all convicted felons, all persons engaging in fornication or adultery, or other persons engaged in illegal activities." The decision also upheld the constitutionality of the bigamy statute in the Utah Constitution.
. "Declaring a fetus to be a 'person' entitled to equal protection would require not only overturning Roe v. Wade but also making abortion, as a matter of constitutional law, illegal in all circumstances, even to save the life of the mother."
has no right to ban guns on campus, rejecting the argument that prohibiting firearms is part of the school's power to control academic affairs. In her dissent, Chief Justice Durham said policies that are reasonably connected to the school's academic mission are within its autonomous authority over academic affairs. Under the majority analysis, she said, "the university may not subject a student to academic discipline for flashing his pistol to a professor in class."
, and the 123rd Jackson Lecture in 2009.
Utah Bar News
Albany Law Review
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
of the Utah Supreme Court
Utah Supreme Court
The Utah Supreme Court is the supreme court of the state of Utah, USA. It has final authority of interpretation of the Utah Constitution. The Utah Supreme Court is composed of five members: a chief justice, an associate chief justice, and three justices. All justices are appointed by the governor...
. She was born on 3 August 1945. Her husband, George Durham, is a pediatrician and they have five children.
Early Life and Education
Durham is the oldest child of three, and she grew up in Southern California. When she was young, she aspired to be a novelist. Durham’s father initially worked for the IRS in Washington, D. C., and in 1960 he became a US Department of Treasury attaché at the ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
Embassy and the family went to French schools and learned French. In the early ‘60s, Durham moved to New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
to attend Wellesley College, a women’s college at the time, where she met her husband, George Durham. She graduated in 1967 with an A.B. with Honors. She then went to Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
for law to be near her husband while he finished his undergraduate studies at Harvard. When he was accepted to Duke Medical School, Durham transferred to Duke Law School. She graduated from Duke Law School in 1971. She is now on the Board of Trustees of Duke University, where she is on the Executive Committee and chairs the Faculty, Graduate and Professional Schools Affairs and Honorary Degree Committees. For a personal account of her early life, see Mormon Women: Portraits and Conversations by James N. Kimball and Kent Miles.
Legal career
Durham was an Instructor of Legal Medicine at Duke University Medical School immediately after she graduated from law school in 1971 until 1973. She was admitted to the North Carolina State Bar in 1971. She had a general law practice while in North Carolina, representing private clients in domestic law, employment law, and personal injury law work. She also did title law work and criminal defense work off of the county indigency list. While in North Carolina, she was a legal consultant for the Duke University Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development. She and her husband moved to Utah in 1973, where she became an Adjunct Professor of Law at Brigham Young UniversityBrigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
’s J. Reuben Clark Law School
J. Reuben Clark Law School
The J. Reuben Clark Law School is a professional graduate school located in Provo, Utah at Brigham Young University. Founded in 1973, the school is named after J. Reuben Clark, Jr.—former U.S. Ambassador, Undersecretary of State, and LDS Church General Authority—and its charter dean was former...
until 1978. At this time she formed a partnership with two other lawyers and founded the law firm of Johnson, Durham, & Moxley. In 1980, the firm merged with a larger firm in Salt Lake City. She also occasionally teaches constitutional law
Constitutional law
Constitutional law is the body of law which defines the relationship of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary....
at the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
’s S. J. Quinney College of Law. Durham is on the Council of the American Law Institute and the American Bar Association
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
’s Council of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. She is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation
American Bar Foundation
Established in 1952, the ' is an independent, nonprofit national research institute located in Chicago, Illinois committed to objective empirical research on law and legal institutions...
, a member of the American Law Institute
American Law Institute
The American Law Institute was established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of American common law and its adaptation to changing social needs. The ALI drafts, approves, and publishes Restatements of the Law, Principles of the Law, model codes, and other proposals for law...
, and serves on the Board of Directors of both the American Judicature Society
American Judicature Society
The American Judicature Society is an independent, nonpartisan, national organization of judges, lawyers, and interested members of the public whose mission is to improve the American justice system - to "secure and promote an independent and qualified judiciary and fair system of justice." ...
and the National Center for State Courts
National Center for State Courts
The National Center for State Courts is a non-profit organization charged with improving judicial administration in the United States and around the world...
.
Judicial Career and Community Service
In 1978, Durham became a trial judge in the 3rd Judicial District Court for the state of Utah. She served for four years, one of them as the presiding judge. She was appointed as a Justice of the Utah Supreme Court by Governor Scott M. MathesonScott M. Matheson
-External links:* from...
in 1982 http://www.utcourts.gov/judgesbios/showGallery.asp?dist=10&ct_type=S#2918 and became the Chief Justice in April 2002. Her current term will expire in 2014. She became the first female Chief Justice to swear into office a female governor when Olene Walker became Utah’s 15th governor. She has served on the Governor’s Task Force that recommended legislation to implement the 1985 amendment
Constitutional amendment
A constitutional amendment is a formal change to the text of the written constitution of a nation or state.Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation...
s to the Judicial Article of the Utah Constitution
Utah Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Utah is the state constitution of Utah. It defines the basic form and operation of state government.- History :The Utah Constitution was drafted at a convention that opened on March 4, 1895 in Salt Lake City...
. She served on the Utah Constitutional Revision Commission for 12 years. As Chief Justice
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
, she chairs the Utah Judicial Council which is the administrative governing body of the state court system. She served as the first chair of the Utah Judicial Council’s Education Committee. She was the Founder of the Leadership Institute in Judicial Education. She was part of the Commission on Justice in the 21st Century and the Co-chair of the Committee on Improving Jury Service. She was the first Chair of the Utah State Court’s Public Outreach Committee. From 1986 to 1997 she was the President of the National Association of Women Judges, which organization she founded. She is a former member of the Federal Judicial Conference, where she was on the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Civil Procedure. She is the immediate past President of the Conference of Chief Justices
Conference of Chief Justices
The Conference of Chief Justices was created in 1949 after the need for an organization composed of the states and territories top jurists was amply discussed at the American Bar Association and other juridical organizations. The first meeting, organized by the Council of State Governments and...
, and is the first Utahn to be elected to this position. She is the leader of the Coalition for Civic, Character, and Service Learning - a partnership between civic organizations, public education, the judicial branch, and the legal profession to improve education about the justice system in Utah public schools.
Awards
Christine Durham has been recognized nationally for her work in judicial education and efforts to improve the administration of justice. In 2007, Durham received the William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence, one of the most prestigious judicial honors in the country. She is the only Utahn to have received this award to date. The award is presented annually to a state court judge who exemplifies the highest level of judicial excellence, integrity, fairness, and professional ethics. Chief Justice of the United States John RobertsJohn Roberts
John Glover Roberts, Jr. is the 17th and current Chief Justice of the United States. He has served since 2005, having been nominated by President George W. Bush after the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist...
presented the award to Durham on 15 November 2007 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.
Chief Justice Roberts said, "Chief Justice Durham has demonstrated her commitment to public service, judicial education, and the cause of justice throughout her 25 years on the Utah Supreme Court. She reflects those qualities that Chief Justice Rehnquist valued during his distinguished career.” President Mary C. McQueen of the National Center for State Courts said Durham was selected because of her “innovative leadership style and her contributions to advancing judicial branch education not only in Utah, but nationally.” Justice Durham is noted for developing interactive education programs in content areas that previously did not have curriculum, such as domestic violence, child witness testimony, and scientific evidence. She has received honorary degrees from the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
, Weber State University
Weber State University
Weber State University is a public university located in the city of Ogden in Weber County, Utah, USA. It was founded in 1889 and is a coeducational, publicly supported university offering professional, liberal arts and technical certificates, as well as associate, bachelor's and master's degrees...
, Salt Lake Community College
Salt Lake Community College
Salt Lake Community College is the largest higher education institution with the most diverse student body in Utah . The College offers and operates throughout the Salt Lake valley. Even with its large student body, the College maintains a student to faculty ratio of just 20 to 1...
, and the College of Eastern Utah.
Selected Durham Opinions
Justice Durham has written both majority opinions and dissenting opinions in many cases. For a full list of Justice Durham's Utah Supreme Court decisions, go to http://www.utcourts.gov/opinions/#scoralPolygamy
In the case of In the Matter of the AdoptionAdoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
of W. A. T., et al, 808 P.2d 1083, 1085 State v. Holm (Utah 1991), Justice Durham protected the civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
of polygamists. The decision held that the Utah Constitution does not per se preclude a polygamist family from adopting children. Justice Durham, writing for the 3-2 court, noted, "The fact that our constitution requires the state to prohibit polygamy does not necessarily mean that the state must deny any or all civil rights and privileges to polygamists." She noted that many things are crimes like polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
, but we extend civil rights to perpetrators of those crimes. She stated, "It is not the role of the courts to make threshold exclusions dismissing without consideration, for example, the adoption petitions of all convicted felons, all persons engaging in fornication or adultery, or other persons engaged in illegal activities." The decision also upheld the constitutionality of the bigamy statute in the Utah Constitution.
Fetal Rights
In the case of State v. MacGuire, 84 P.3d 1171 (Utah 2004) in 2004 the Utah Supreme Court ruled that all fetuses are covered under the state's criminal homicide statute. Though she agreed with that premise, Justice Durham dissented based on the definition of the capital murder and aggravated murder charges as well as based on the US Supreme Court decision of Roe v. WadeRoe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade, , was a controversial landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court on the issue of abortion. The Court decided that a right to privacy under the due process clause in the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution extends to a woman's decision to have an abortion,...
. "Declaring a fetus to be a 'person' entitled to equal protection would require not only overturning Roe v. Wade but also making abortion, as a matter of constitutional law, illegal in all circumstances, even to save the life of the mother."
Primacy
Durham is a proponent of first looking to the Utah Constitution before the Federal Constitution for protection of an individual's rights. In her concurrence to State v. Daniels, 40 P.3d 611, 626 (Utah 2002), she stated, “I continue to be a proponent of independent state constitutional analysis on federalism grounds, believing we should use a primacy approach or dual analysis approach whenever possible.” In State v. Larocco, 794 P.2d 460 (Utah 1990), however, Justice Durham recognized the duality of the American system. Justice Durham, in her majority opinion, explained that states may rest their analysis on state constitution first because it “may prove to be an appropriate method for insulating citizens from the vagaries of inconsistent interpretations given . . . by the federal courts.”Gun Rights
In the case of University of Utah v. Shurtleff, 144 P.3d 1109 (Utah 2006)., the Utah Supreme Court ruled in a 4-1 decision that the University of UtahUniversity of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
has no right to ban guns on campus, rejecting the argument that prohibiting firearms is part of the school's power to control academic affairs. In her dissent, Chief Justice Durham said policies that are reasonably connected to the school's academic mission are within its autonomous authority over academic affairs. Under the majority analysis, she said, "the university may not subject a student to academic discipline for flashing his pistol to a professor in class."
Publications and Speeches
Justice Durham has published numerous articles and is a frequent lecturer on the judiciary, women’s issues, and civic education. She helped draft a manual on legal rights of the elderly. Also, as head of the Judiciary Branch of Utah, she gives annual State of the Judiciary addresses to the legislative branch of the state. She has recently spoken at various conventions, including the 2010 Spring Convention of the Utah State Bar, the 2010 National Conference of the American Bar AssociationAmerican Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
, and the 123rd Jackson Lecture in 2009.
See also
Kimball, James N. and Miles, Kent. Mormon Women: Portraits and Conversations. 1st ed. Salt Lake City, UT: Handcart Books, 2009. 184-209. Print.Utah Bar News
Albany Law Review