Executive Session

Floor Speech

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Madam President, I am pleased to have the nomination of Judge Carolyn McHugh before the Senate today. Throughout her life Judge McHugh has demonstrated a commitment to the highest standards of academic excellence, professional distinction, and public service.

Judge McHugh graduated magna cum laude from the University of Utah, where she later earned her jurist doctorate, graduating Order of the Coif and serving as the editor on the Utah Law Review.

After excelling in law school, Judge McHugh clerked for the Honorable Bruce Jenkins of the District of Utah. She then spent more than 20 years in private practice, where she excelled, focusing on complex commercial litigation.

Throughout her career in private practice, Judge McHugh has demonstrated a strong commitment to pro bono work. She has been awarded several honors for her work to advance women in the legal profession. In 1996 the Utah State Bar recognized her with a Distinguished Committee Award from the Needs of Children Committee.

It was nearly 10 years ago when I first met Judge McHugh when I was working for then-Governor Jon Huntsman. During his first year as Governor, it was time for him to appoint someone to the Utah Court of Appeals. At that point the nominating commissions began their work, and shortly after their work concluded, the Governor's staff started interviewing various applicants, various people who had been considered by the nominating commission. It soon became apparent that there was a real standout in this very impressive group of candidates for this court of appeals position, and Judge McHugh's name rose to the top of the list.

During discussions I had with her and with my colleagues, as well as with Governor Huntsman, I found her to possess a keenly insightful legal mind, and I found her to be someone who really understands the role of judges--the necessarily limited role--and the crucial function of the judge in our system. She has served with great distinction on the Utah Court of Appeals during those intervening years.

For that reason I am confident, based on the knowledge she has acquired, the skills she has developed and honed over the years, and the commitment to public service she has displayed up to this point in her career, Judge McHugh will, in fact, excel as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. I strongly urge my colleagues to support her confirmation.

Thank you, Madam President.

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