Utah Court of Appeals Judge John D. Luthy will appear on the Nov. 3 general election ballot for a retention vote.

Voters will decide whether to keep Luthy on the bench in a nonpartisan, yes-or-no contest. Gov. Spencer J. Cox appointed Luthy to the Court of Appeals in October 2022, according to the Utah Courts official biography.

Candidate information

  • Name: John D. Luthy
  • Office: Utah Court of Appeals judge (retention)
  • Election: Nov. 3, 2026, general election
  • Party: Nonpartisan
  • From: Cache Valley, Utah
  • Education: Bachelor's degree in political science and government, magna cum laude, Utah State University, 1996; juris doctor, cum laude, J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University, 2000

Experience and public service

Luthy's career spans clerkships, private practice, public service and legal education, according to his Utah Courts biography and a Utah Policy report.

After law school, Luthy clerked for Utah Court of Appeals Judge Gregory K. Orme from 2000 to 2002. He then clerked for Utah Supreme Court Justice Richard C. Howe in 2002 and Utah Court of Appeals Judge Russell W. Bench in 2003.

Luthy worked as an attorney at Suitter Axland from 2003 to 2006. He then served as an instructor of legal writing at the University of South Carolina from 2006 to 2014.

He returned to Utah in 2014. He practiced at Peck Hadfield Baxter & Moore from 2014 to 2019, then served as chief civil deputy county attorney for Cache County from 2019 to 2021. Luthy won election as Cache County attorney and held that post from 2021 to 2022.

Beyond his primary roles, Luthy served as president of the Cache County Bar Association and as an adjunct instructor at the U.S. Department of Justice National Advocacy Center. He also taught as an adjunct professor at Utah State University and served on the executive committee of the Appellate Practice Section of the Utah State Bar.

Gov. Cox appointed him to the appeals court in October 2022.

No issue responses from Luthy were available for this profile.

Candidate profiles are based on publicly available records, official biographies and election data. No questionnaire responses were received for this candidate.