Carolyn Baldwin McHugh (born July 12, 1957) is an American lawyer and judge who serves as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. and former Presiding Judge of the Utah Court of Appeals.
Early life and education
McHugh was born in 1957, in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania while her parents were visiting her paternal grandparents. The family, which grew to include eight children, was living in Baltimore, Maryland at the time.
Shortly after McHugh's birth, her father was transferred to Andover, Massachusetts, and later, to Wilmington, Delaware. Then, during her freshman year of high school, the family moved again to accommodate her father's career, relocating to Salt Lake City, Utah.
In 1975, McHugh graduated from Judge Memorial Catholic High School in Salt Lake City, where she participated in sports, student government, drill team, yearbook, and other activities. McHugh was selected as the Judge Memorial Sterling Scholar of English and Literature.
McHugh continued her education at the University of Utah, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, in 1978. After working for a year to earn her first year of tuition, McHugh entered the S.J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah in 1979. She received her Juris Doctor in 1982, graduating Order of the Coif, serving as an editor of the Utah Law Review.
Legal career
McHugh served as a law clerk for Judge Bruce Sterling Jenkins of the United States District Court for the District of Utah from August 1982 to August 1983. She joined the Salt Lake City law firm now known as Parr Brown Gee & Loveless as an associate in 1983 and was made a shareholder of the firm in 1987. During her private legal career, McHugh concentrated her practice in complex commercial litigation, in areas including antitrust, construction, environmental, real estate, financial lending, and title insurance. Throughout that time, McHugh also maintained an active pro bono practice, assisting persons of limited means with a variety of legal issues, including family law and minor civil matters, while also serving as a court-appointed guardian ad litem.
Judicial career
State judicial service
In August 2005, McHugh was appointed to the Court of Appeals by Utah Governor Jon M. Huntsman, Jr. and served in that capacity until she was appointed a federal circuit judge. In 2010, the Chief of Justice of the Utah Supreme Court appointed McHugh to serve as a member of the Judicial Conduct Commission to fill the vacancy created when her colleague, Judge Russell Bench, retired on December 31, 2009. In 2011, McHugh was appointed as the appellate court member of the Commission on Civic and Character Education, where she served with the Lieutenant Governor, members of the Utah Legislature, and representatives of the State Board of Education. On January 1, 2012, McHugh began a two-year term as the presiding judge of the Utah Court of Appeals.
Federal judicial service
On May 16, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated McHugh to be a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit to the seat vacated by Judge Michael R. Murphy, who assumed senior status on December 31, 2012. Her nomination was approved unanimously by the Senate Judiciary Committee on January 16, 2014. On March 6, 2014, senator Harry Reid filed for cloture on her nomination. On March 10, 2014, the Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 62–34 vote. On March 12, 2014, McHugh was confirmed by a 98–0 vote. She received her commission on March 14, 2014.
Select cases
McHugh wrote for the state court in each of the following decisions.