Utah's 3rd District Judge Michael Murphy has been nominated by President Clinton for the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
If confirmed by the Senate, Murphy would succeed Judge Monroe McKay, who took senior (part-time) status on Jan. 1, 1994.Murphy "is considered one of the finest trial judges in Utah," said Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. "His intellectual credentials are impeccable."
Hatch, who confirmed Tuesday that Clinton had picked Murphy, was quoted in a copyright article by The Salt Lake Tribune.
Murphy also had been considered last year for the Utah Supreme Court and this year for a
U.S. District Court seat.
Hatch said Murphy nearly was chosen for the federal judgeship that went to Assistant U.S. Attorney Tena Camp-bell, "but it was important to the Clinton administration to select the first woman federal judge in Utah's history."
Others who had been mentioned for the 10th Circuit Court seat included U.S. Attorney Scott Matheson Jr., Utah Supreme Court Justice Christine Durham and Salt Lake attorney Dan Berman, who withdrew his name from consideration.
Hatch is chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which will consider the Murphy nomination before it goes to the full Senate for confirmation.
One of Murphy's strongest supporters was Utah Attorney General Jan Graham, Utah's only statewide elected Democrat.
"I don't think there could be a better choice for the Court of Appeals," said Graham, who was a law partner with Murphy. "Mike has been a mentor and inspiration to me since I got out of law school. He is not only a great lawyer, he is a great person, and I am happy to see him receive this honor."
After Berman withdrew, Hatch supported Murphy, who also was backed by Republican confidant Doug Foxley and Salt Lake lawyer Robert S. Campbell, Hatch's personal attorney.
Utah traditionally has two full-time seats on the 12-judge 10th Circuit Court, which covers appeals from federal courts in Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico, Kansas and Oklahoma.
Murphy would fill the last opening on the 10th Circuit. Nine full-time judges are sitting, with two other nominations - Mary Beck Briscoe of the Kansas Court of Appeals and Colorado lawyer Carlos Lucero - awaiting Senate confirmation.
Murphy is the first Utah Democrat named to the 10th Circuit since McKay was named by President Carter 16 years ago. The last Utah appointment was Stephen Anderson, appointed by President Reagan.
Murphy, 47, was a senior partner and board member in the Salt Lake City law firm of Jones, Waldo, Holbrook and McDonough before he was named to the 3rd District Court in 1986 by former Gov. Norm Bangerter. He has been presiding judge since 1990.
A Wyoming native, he graduated from the University of Wyoming Law School in 1973, then moved to Salt Lake City to begin his practice.
He is married to Maureen Elizabeth Donnelly Murphy, who is leaving as principal of Rowland Hall-St. Mark's Elementary School to become a clinical instructor in the University of Utah Department of Education this fall.
Murphy is best-known as the judge who presided over the bombing and murder trial of the polygamist Singer-Swapp clan in 1988.
Murphy won a Freedom of Information Award from the Utah chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists for the consideration he gave all parties in accommodating reporters while maintaining professional decorum at a 1988 murder trial involving the polygamist Singer-Swapp clan.