UT Bar Administrative Law 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under UAPA, how is an adjudicative proceeding before a Utah agency commenced?
- Only by the agency issuing a notice of agency action
- By either a notice of agency action or a request for agency action filed by a person (Correct answer)
- By filing a complaint in district court that is transferred to the agency
- By stipulation of all interested parties
Correct answer: By either a notice of agency action or a request for agency action filed by a person
Utah Code § 63G-4-201 provides that adjudicative proceedings commence either by the agency's notice of agency action or by a person's request for agency action.
Question 2: A Utah agency denies a license application in an informal adjudicative proceeding. The disappointed applicant's route to judicial review is:
- A petition for extraordinary writ in the Utah Supreme Court
- An appeal on the record to the Utah Court of Appeals
- A trial de novo in the district court (Correct answer)
- Arbitration before the Division of Administrative Rules
Correct answer: A trial de novo in the district court
Under Utah Code § 63G-4-402, judicial review of informal adjudicative proceedings is by trial de novo in the district court.
Question 3: In Utah, an agency's interpretation of a statute it administers is generally reviewed by courts:
- Under a mandatory deference rule identical to federal Chevron deference
- For correctness, with no deference unless the Legislature has explicitly or implicitly granted the agency discretion (Correct answer)
- Only for bad faith
- Under the clearly erroneous standard applied to factual findings
Correct answer: For correctness, with no deference unless the Legislature has explicitly or implicitly granted the agency discretion
Utah courts review questions of statutory interpretation for correctness, granting deference only where the Legislature has delegated discretion to the agency to interpret or apply the statute.
Question 4: A party misses the 30-day deadline to file a petition for judicial review of a final Utah agency order. The reviewing court will most likely:
- Hear the case anyway if the merits are strong
- Dismiss for lack of jurisdiction because the filing deadline is jurisdictional (Correct answer)
- Transfer the case back to the agency for reconsideration
- Stay the case pending legislative clarification
Correct answer: Dismiss for lack of jurisdiction because the filing deadline is jurisdictional
The 30-day deadline for petitioning for judicial review of a final agency action under UAPA is treated as jurisdictional, so an untimely petition must be dismissed.
Question 5: Which of the following is NOT required in a Utah agency's notice of agency action commencing a formal adjudicative proceeding?
- The agency's file number and the name of the adjudicative proceeding
- A statement that the proceeding is formal or informal
- The names of all potential witnesses the agency may call (Correct answer)
- A statement of the legal authority and jurisdiction under which the action is taken
Correct answer: The names of all potential witnesses the agency may call
UAPA requires the notice to identify the proceeding, its formality designation, jurisdiction, and issues, but a witness list is not a required element of the commencement notice.
Question 6: A request for agency reconsideration under UAPA is deemed denied if the agency head does not act within:
- 10 days
- 20 days (Correct answer)
- 30 days
- 60 days
Correct answer: 20 days
Under Utah Code § 63G-4-302, if the agency does not issue an order on a request for reconsideration within 20 days, the request is considered denied.
Question 7: Utah's Administrative Rulemaking Act requires every agency rule to be reviewed and, unless reauthorized, to expire. This sunset-style mechanism requires each rule to be:
- Re-enacted by the Legislature annually
- Reviewed every five years by the agency, with a statement filed to continue it (Correct answer)
- Approved by the Governor each biennium
- Ratified by public referendum
Correct answer: Reviewed every five years by the agency, with a statement filed to continue it
Utah requires agencies to review each rule every five years and file a statement of continuation, or the rule lapses.
UT Bar Administrative Law 3
Under UAPA, how is an adjudicative proceeding before a Utah agency commenced?