ESTABLISH
ORDER
CS 387P Judicial Review of
Administrative Hearings
10/18/82 Revised 05/09/25 Training Completed 05/09/25 Last
Reviewed 06/04/25
Utah
Code 26B-9-230, 63G-4-401,
63G-4-402
CIC: Refer to procedures found in CS 1387P CIC Judicial
Review of Administrative Orders for CIC Cases.
Statute Authority
A party may
obtain judicial review of a final agency action (administrative order) issued
by the Office of Recovery Services/Child Support Services (ORS/CSS) by filing a
petition for judicial review of a final agency action with the district court
in the county in which that party lives within 30 days after the date the
administrative order was issued in accordance with Utah Code 26B-9-230. If a respondent does not believe that any
administrative order is correct, s/he may file a petition for judicial review.
“(1)
A party aggrieved may obtain judicial review of final agency action, as
described in Section 63B-4-403, except in actions where judicial review is
expressly prohibited by statute.
(2)
A party may seek judicial review only after exhausting all administrative
remedies available, except that:
(a)
a party seeking judicial review need not exhaust administrative remedies if
this chapter or any other statute states that exhaustion is not required;
(b)
the court may relieve a party seeking judicial review of the requirement to
exhaust any or all administrative remedies if:
(i) the administrative remedies are inadequate; or
(ii)
exhaustion of remedies would result in irreparable harm disproportionate to the
public benefit derived from requiring exhaustion.
(3)
(a) A party shall file a petition for judicial review of final agency action
within 30 days after the date that the order constituting the final agency
action is issued or is considered to have been issued under Subsection 63G-4-302(3)(b).
(b)
The petition shall name the agency and all other appropriate parties as
respondents and shall meet the form requirements specified in this chapter.”
The court will decide, by "trial de novo," (a new
hearing where all evidence is considered) all questions of fact and law, and
any constitutional issues raised in the petition, which means that the judge
will set the parameters for the hearing.
Utah Code 63G-4-402 states:
“(1)
(a) The
district courts have jurisdiction to review by trial de novo all final agency
actions resulting from informal adjudicative proceedings, except that the
juvenile courts have jurisdiction over all final agency actions relating to:
(i) the removal or placement of children in state custody;
(ii) the
support of children under Subsection (1)(a)(i) as
determined administratively under Section 78A-6-356. . . .”
The hearing may involve a full hearing on the facts, a mere review
of the record, testimony by the Presiding Officer, and arguments by attorneys,
depending on the nature of the petition and decision of the judge.
All petitions
for Judicial Review served on the Department of Health and Human Services
(DHHS) and routed to the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH), ORS, or the
Attorney General’s Office (AGO), should be rerouted to the appropriate CSS
team.
1.
If you receive a petition requesting judicial review, take the
steps listed below.
a.
Notify the appropriate attorney in the AGO of the pending action;
b.
Send a copy of the petition to the OAH, if the order involved is
based on an administrative hearing, and the OAH has not previously received a
copy;
c.
Send a copy of the petition to your Regional Director (RD) and the
CSS Director;
d.
Coordinate the preparation of the case with the AGO; and,
e.
Provide supporting material to the appropriate attorney when
required.
2.
Upon receipt of a copy of the petition for judicial review, the
AGO has responsibility for the steps listed below.
a.
Obtain copies of the order to be reviewed, pleadings, evidence,
and transcripts of testimony taken, if recorded.
b.
Review all case material including the transcript;
c.
Review the Department's position with the CSS Director;
d.
Prepare and file an answer to the petition with the district court
within the appropriate period allowed;
e.
Send a copy of the answer to the petition to the respondent's
attorney, or to the respondent if the respondent is not represented by an
attorney (send one copy to file forward to be put in the case file in Content
Manager);
f.
Take all necessary steps to complete the appeal process, to
include arguing the issues before the District court; and,
g.
Notify the CSS Director of the court's decision.
3.
If OAH has conducted a hearing in the proceeding, at the request
of the attorney it will prepare a record of the hearing, include copies of the
order to be reviewed, pleadings, evidence, and transcripts, and complete the
steps listed below.
a.
Retain one copy of the materials for the hearing file; and,
b.
Send the original and two copies of the transcript and a
Certificate of the Record to the attorney.
4.
When the results of the judicial review are received, the CSS
Director will complete the steps listed below.
a.
Review the court's findings with the attorney;
b.
Brief the Regional Director (RD) involved on adverse action and
possible consequences;
c.
Strategize with the RD involved for possible judicial relief;
d.
Review requested relief with the appropriate attorney;
e.
Prepare a memorandum outlining CSS’s position and request the AGO
file the appropriate action; and,
f.
Inform the OAH Director of the results of the judicial review by
forwarding a copy of the decision to the OAH.