Utah Supreme Court Justice Menssen signed Prop 4 repeal petition before joining court

Utah Supreme Court Justice Michael Menssen signed a petition in February to repeal Proposition 4, the state's anti-gerrymandering initiative, before he became a judge, KSL reported. Menssen has not recused himself from redistricting cases, and a group that advocates on state policy has called on him to do so. ^[1]

According to KSL, a public state database shows Menssen signed the petition dated Feb. 12. He was not a judge then, and the repeal effort did not qualify for the ballot. Gov. Spencer Cox appointed Menssen to the court in August, and he was sworn in the following month. He is one of two new justices who filled the vacancies left by former Chief Justice Matthew Durrant, who retired, and former Justice Diana Hagen, who resigned amid misconduct allegations. Before joining the court, he was a partner at a Salt Lake City law firm. ^[1]

Menssen took part in a Supreme Court hearing earlier this month involving the redistricting plaintiffs, KSL reported. The plaintiffs have asked the court to strike down a law creating a panel of judges to hear cases with potential constitutional issues, and the justices are considering that request. The court's calendar shows Menssen has not opted out of any cases scheduled for arguments from September through December. He has not commented publicly. ^[1]

A spokesperson for Cox said the governor's office was not aware of the signature, adding that searching initiative petition packets for a candidate's signature is not part of its merit-based review process. A Utah State Courts spokesperson said normal standards and procedures for recusal decisions were considered and followed, but did not explain the reasoning. Alliance for a Better Utah called for recusal. Executive Director Katie Matheson said that when a judge has personally signed on to one side of a fight, "the public has every reason to question his impartiality." ^[1]