Dear Sen. Weiler:

I am writing in support of Margaret Plane’s confirmation to become a judge on the Court of Appeals.  She is a truly outstanding candidate, as I shall explain in this email.  I know her through Utah State Bar and Women Lawyers of Utah activities and projects as well as her service on the Ethics and Discipline Committee of the Utah Supreme Court.  Her reputation in the legal community is that of a smart and talented attorney who is hard working, warm, friendly and collegial.

I served on the Ethics and Discipline Committee for many years, including six years as vice chair of the Committee and then six years as chair.  The Committee handles the initial stages of complaints that are filed against attorneys and the main responsibility of Committee members is to screen cases to see if they should be prosecuted by the Office of Professional Conduct.

Ms. Plane was appointed by the Supreme Court to serve on the Committee, and she served for six years, including as chair of her screening panel.  The Committee has four panels, and each one consists of 6 attorneys and 2 public members.  The panels hold hearings to take sworn testimony and hear argument from complaining parties, disciplinary attorneys and responding attorneys and their counsel.  Ms. Plane was held in high regard by the members of her panel and the various attorneys who are involved in the disciplinary process.  After her appointment to serve on the Court of Appeals was made public, a member of her screening panel told me how much the attorney had enjoyed serving with Ms. Plane and said she handled the cases before the panel skillfully and efficiently.  She was always organized and well prepared.

During the last two years of Ms. Plane’s service on her screening panel, I became chair of the Committee and saw first hand the care with which she performed her duties, including making detailed findings of fact and conclusions of law in the cases that came before her panel.  Several years later, the Supreme Court appointed her to serve as special counsel in a case that was handled separately from the usual screening panel process, as was required by some of the disciplinary rules.  Ms. Plane investigated the case and decided that it should be dismissed.  She prepared a thorough and well written opinion that was delivered to the Court.  The complaining party then appealed her decision, and I handled the appeal.  I did a careful review of the file and Ms. Plane’s decision and determined that her ruling was well thought out and well grounded in the facts of the case and the applicable law and rules.  Her writing was clear and her analysis was impeccable.  Her willingness to take on this case as a volunteer along with her many other activities and a busy practice at the time as counsel for Salt Lake City is a demonstration of her dedication to the profession and the public.

I have no doubt that Ms. Plane will be an outstanding judge who will treat the parties who appear before her with fairness and respect.  She will be prepared for hearings and will be able to get to the heart of the issues before her.  I believe she will become a treasured colleague and will contribute to the collegiality of the court.  

Very truly yours, 

Terrie McIntosh

1476 Michigan Ave.

Salt Lake City, UT 84105

(801) 582-4849

terrie.mcintosh@gmail.com