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Utah Court of Appeals

Can a settlement agreement be enforced when essential easement terms are missing?

Hicken v. Van Wagoner

2026 UT App 164

October 29, 2026

A settlement agreement that leaves essential easement terms unresolved—without a clear method for ascertaining them—cannot be judicially enforced without first making factual findings on whether the parties had a meeting of the minds.

Civil Appeals

Attorney Fees
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Contract Interpretation
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Preservation of Error
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Property Rights

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Utah Court of Appeals

Can a defendant’s post-incident silence defeat a self-defense claim on directed verdict?

State v. Neal

2026 UT App 163

October 29, 2026

Evidence that a defendant harbored pre-existing animosity toward the victim, opened a knife requiring two hands before any perceived threat materialized, and never mentioned self-defense in post-incident statements can be sufficient to disprove a self-defense claim and withstand a directed verdict motion.

Criminal Appeals

Appellate Procedure
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Evidence and Admissibility
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Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
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Sufficiency of Evidence

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Utah Court of Appeals

Can a prosecutor’s sentencing remarks during closing argument require a new trial in Utah?

State v. Blair

2026 UT App 162

October 29, 2026

Prosecutors who minimize sentencing consequences in closing argument risk reversal when the evidence of guilt is less than overwhelming, and prior convictions are inadmissible under rule 404(b) when ‘intent to possess’ is merely a proxy for propensity.

Criminal Appeals

Evidence and Admissibility
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Mens Rea and Criminal Intent
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Preservation of Error
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Sufficiency of Evidence

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Utah Court of Appeals

Does a negative drug test retroactively defeat plain view probable cause in Utah?

State v. Saunders

2026 UT App 161

October 22, 2026

Post-seizure field-test results that are negative or inconclusive do not retroactively invalidate probable cause that was objectively reasonable at the moment of seizure, and the absence of body camera footage does not compel rejection of a testifying officer’s account when the district court has credited that testimony after firsthand observation.

Criminal Appeals

Evidence and Admissibility
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Search and Seizure
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Standard of Review
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Sufficiency of Evidence

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Utah Court of Appeals

Do original survey monuments control over plat measurements in a Utah boundary dispute?

Boyer v. Rubin

2026 UT App 160

October 22, 2026

Original subdivision monuments set by the original surveyor before any lot sales establish the true boundary as a matter of law, trumping conflicting plat measurements, and a party who fails to object to extensive monument-related trial evidence implicitly consents under rule 15(b) to that issue being tried.

Civil Appeals

Appellate Procedure
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Preservation of Error
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Property Rights
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Statutory Interpretation

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Utah Court of Appeals

Can a written plea agreement substitute for the district court’s oral advisement that it is not bound by sentencing recommendations?

State v. Prestwich

2026 UT App 159

October 22, 2026

A written plea agreement that clearly and repeatedly conveys the nonbinding nature of a sentencing recommendation can render a guilty plea knowing and voluntary even without an oral advisement from the district court at the plea colloquy.

Criminal Appeals

Appellate Procedure
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Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
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Preservation of Error
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Sufficiency of Evidence

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Utah Court of Appeals

Can an irrevocable trust’s payment provision give the settlor an unrestricted withdrawal right?

Jenson v. Jenson

2026 UT App 158

October 22, 2026

A trust provision requiring the trustee to pay principal to the settlor on written request creates an unrestricted power of withdrawal that overrides a conflicting irrevocability clause as a matter of law.

Civil Appeals

Contract Interpretation
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Property Rights
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Statutory Interpretation
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Summary Judgment

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Utah Court of Appeals

When does garnishment moot a contempt appeal in Utah divorce enforcement proceedings?

Duffin v. Duffin

2026 UT App 156

October 16, 2026

When a divorce court’s contempt order specifically provides that garnishment will purge the contempt, a subsequent writ of garnishment renders moot any appeal of the contempt finding.

Civil Appeals
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Family Law Appeals

Appellate Procedure
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Attorney Fees
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Child Custody and Parent-Time
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Mootness

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Utah Court of Appeals

When does cumulative hearsay defeat an ineffective assistance claim?

State v. Munguia

2026 UT App 155

October 16, 2026

Repeated hearsay testimony that merely echoes a victim’s own trial account cannot establish Strickland prejudice because cumulative evidence does not alter the evidentiary picture or affect the jury’s credibility determination.

Criminal Appeals

Evidence and Admissibility
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Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
|
Sufficiency of Evidence

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