Guides
General information about Utah law. Not legal advice.
Statutes, bills, and votes
Official text and legislative history for Utah's anti-SLAPP law and the rules that govern it.
Utah Code § 78B-25
Uniform Public Expression Protection Act
Enacted by S.B. 18 (2023). Utah’s anti-SLAPP act.
Gives a defendant a special motion for expedited relief that stays the case, shifts the burden to the plaintiff, and makes the plaintiff pay if the motion succeeds. Utah was the fourth state to adopt the uniform act, after Washington, Kentucky, and Hawaii.
- Enacted by
- S.B. 18 (2023 General Session)
- Sponsor
- Sen. Curtis S. Bramble
- Signed
- March 23, 2023
- Effective
- May 3, 2023
- Session law
- Chapter 488
Utah Code § 78B-25-109
Appeal
The 21-day deadline is in a court rule, not in this section.
Section 78B-25-109 says only that an appeal is filed "in accordance with Rule 4." Rule 4's ordinary deadline is 30 days, but paragraph (a)(2) carves out UPEPA at 21 days. Reading the statute alone gets you the wrong number.
Appeal as of right means the moving party does not need permission. They file a notice and the appeal goes ahead. Section 109 gives that right only to the party who brought the motion, and only when the motion was denied. Anyone else has to ask the appellate court to take the case, which the court can refuse.
Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 7
Pleadings and motions
How the motion is briefed, and how long each paper can be.
Sets the 14-day opposition, the 7-day reply, the objection rounds, the Request to Submit for Decision, and the page and word caps.
Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 73
Attorney fees
Section 110 says fees are owed. This rule is how they are claimed.
Section 110 says the court shall award fees to a prevailing movant, but the procedure lives here: the motion is due no later than 14 days after judgment, must specify the basis and amount, and must be supported by an affidavit giving the name, position, and hourly rate for each person who did the work.
Utah Code § 78B-6-1401 to -1405
Citizen Participation in Government Act
Enacted by H.B. 112 (2001). Repealed by S.B. 18 (2023).
Utah's previous anti-SLAPP law, passed in 2001 under the title "Prevention of Retaliatory Lawsuits." It reached only speech that qualified as participating in the process of government, which is why so much older Utah material describes a statute that no longer exists.
- Enacted by
- H.B. 112 (2001 General Session)
- Sponsor
- Rep. Rebecca D. Lockhart
- Repealed
- May 3, 2023, by S.B. 18