Michelle Quist is an experienced litigator and appellate lawyer, a single mom of 7, involved in law for over 25 years.

Why I’m Running

I’m running to get the politics out of the attorney general’s office by electing a third party candidate untainted by party politics and untethered from either major political party. Let's cut the purse strings and elect a third party candidate disconnected from big party bosses. Politics has no place in law enforcement. We need an honest broker at the table.

We need Michelle.

Salt Lake Tribune: After Decades of scandals, it’s time for an experienced and honest attorney general in Utah

By Michelle Quist

Experience matters. Integrity counts. I have both.

I’ve been a Wall Street lawyer, a federal court clerk, a solo practitioner, a law school Dean of Admissions and a Utah State Bar Commissioner. I am now a business litigator, appellate advocate and a familiar face in Utah’s legal community.

I am not a lobbyist or Utah politico insider. And that’s a good thing.

(Read the full article here)

Watch my campaign video!

Deseret News Opinion: Why a third-party candidate is best for Utah attorney general

By Michelle Quist

A vote for me in November will do three things:

  1. Send a message to those who have been stewards of this office for decades that voters are unhappy with that stewardship.

  2. Reform the office to what is essentially a nonpartisan attorney general and get the politics out of the office by disconnecting it from big party bosses and their purse strings.

  3. Elect the best candidate with the most experience and service in Utah’s legal community whose only interest is to refocus back on state legal issues.

(Click here to read the entire article.)

About Michelle

Michelle is a business litigator and appellate advocate representing Utah families, businesses, cities, and counties in complex civil litigation, regulatory, constitutional, and appellate matters. She began her career in 2000 on Wall Street and has a myriad of legal experience, including as a clerk and staff attorney on the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, the Admissions Dean of BYU Law School, an attorney in solo practice and at a boutique firm, an editorial writer and opinion columnist for Utah's largest newspaper, in-house counsel for an e-commerce SaaS company, and ghostwriting for top criminal trial attorneys. She is the mom to seven children and one Bernedoodle (their father passed away in 2020).

Issues

Office Priorities

Talent

Office staff deserve the time and resources from a leader who will ensure they are supported. The office needs to stop wasting resources outsourcing its best cases. Utah has some of the best attorneys in the nation. Our state's law firm should attract them, retain them, and train them to staff the state's most important cases.

Technology

The Attorney General’s Office was recently discredited once again for failing to establish a workable document management system. Law firms in the state are using AI in their e-discovery tools and the state’s law firm is pulling lost thumb drives out of drawers. They are woefully behind in their discovery practices, and likely woefully behind in their other technology uses as well.

Transparency

The AG is a public official. Her staffing, public calendar, financing, and other public decisions should be transparent to taxpayers. There should be nothing to hide.

Policy Issues

Protect Women and Children

Ensure law enforcement is implementing the lethality assessment protocol in all domestic violence interactions. Educate youth on dangers of online sexting, including the advent of AI-generated images. Ensure prosecution of sexual crimes against women and children.

Support Law Enforcement

Partner with law enforcement throughout the state to ensure funding and training are at optimum levels. Help organize education and collaboration opportunities for county prosecutors to share ideas and strategies.

Stop Government Corruption

Act as watchdog of state officials and legislators to ensure government actors are using government resources appropriately and not using public offices to profit personally. Advocate for strong ethical guidelines against government gifting, ensure laws are followed, and ensure transparency.

#MichelleforAG

#MichelleforAG

Representative Cases

Social Media

Transparency Laws

Michelle helped write an amicus brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in support of a California law requiring social media companies to disclose information relating to their content moderation regarding hate speech, disinformation, harassment, and extremism on their platforms, and report data on enforcement of those policies.

Public Access to Streams

Pro Bono

Michelle argued pro bono for public access to river streambeds before the Utah Supreme Court. 


Cities and Towns 

Elections Referendum

Michelle argued before the Utah Supreme Court and helped defeat an extraordinary writ of mandamus seeking a referendum against a Utah city’s enactment of various ordinances. 

Public Lands

RS 2477

Michelle went to trial to help represent Utah counties in establishing the scope of their RS 2477 rights of way, and represented them before the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in ongoing RS 2477 litigation relating to Utah’s efforts to safeguard hundreds of rights of way in southern Utah.  

Christine Durham, former Chief Justice Utah Supreme Court, Senior Of Counsel Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati;

Deno Himonas, former Utah Supreme Court Justice, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati;

Fred Voros, former Utah Court of Appeals Judge, Zimmerman Booher;

David Schwendiman, former Chief Prosecutor of the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office, The Hague;

Bonnie Mitchell, Professor Emerita, S.J. Quinney College of Law;

Thomas A. Mitchell, Assistant Attorney General, Senior Counsel, Utah Trust Lands Administration;

Christopher McNeill, Lowenstein Sandler, LLP;

Kristin Woods, Past Bar President, Kristin Woods PLLC;

Robert O. Rice, Past Bar President, Ray Quinney and Nebeker;

H. Dickson Burton, Past Bar President, TraskBritt, P.C.;

Traci Gundersen, Bar Commissioner, 4Life Research;

Ben McAdams, former Congressman, Common Ground Institute;

Kate Conyers, Past Bar Commissioner, Conyers & Nix;

Sylvia Grace Acosta, Past Bar Commissioner, Trujillo and Acosta;

Scott Hansen, Parsons Behle & Latimer;

Jennifer Horne Huntsman, Holland & Hart;

Mike Harmond, Holland & Hart;

Wayne Latu, Quinn Emanuel;

Kim Swallow, Adobe;

Mat Parke, Parke Gordon;

Cherise Bacalski, The Appellate Group;

Eli McCann, Oracle;

Ann Marie Taliaferro, Brown Bradshaw & Moffat;

Zara Guinard, Holland & Hart;

John Gygi, U.S. Small Business Administration;

Miriam Allred, Farmers Insurance;

David Westerly, retired;

Julie McAdams, University of Utah Office of General Counsel;

Beth Kennedy, Zimmerman Booker;

Troy Booher, Zimmerman Booher;

Engels Tejeda, Holland & Hart;

Gregory Ferbrache, Ferbrache Law, P.L.L.C.;

Jason Nichols, Parsons Behle & Latimer;

Melanie R. Clark, Foley & Lardner LLP;

James Greg Dyer, UESP my529;

Whitney Krogue, Ray Quinney & Nebeker;

Robert Cummings, Spencer Fane;

David R. Irvine, David R. Irvine, PC;

Herm Olsen, Hilyard Anderson and Olsen;

Dianne Orcutt, Senior Deputy District Attorney, Salt Lake County;

Christine Durham, former Chief Justice Utah Supreme Court, Senior Of Counsel Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati; Deno Himonas, former Utah Supreme Court Justice, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati; Fred Voros, former Utah Court of Appeals Judge, Zimmerman Booher; David Schwendiman, former Chief Prosecutor of the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office, The Hague; Bonnie Mitchell, Professor Emerita, S.J. Quinney College of Law; Thomas A. Mitchell, Assistant Attorney General, Senior Counsel, Utah Trust Lands Administration; Christopher McNeill, Lowenstein Sandler, LLP; Kristin Woods, Past Bar President, Kristin Woods PLLC; Robert O. Rice, Past Bar President, Ray Quinney and Nebeker; H. Dickson Burton, Past Bar President, TraskBritt, P.C.; Traci Gundersen, Bar Commissioner, 4Life Research; Ben McAdams, former Congressman, Common Ground Institute; Kate Conyers, Past Bar Commissioner, Conyers & Nix; Sylvia Grace Acosta, Past Bar Commissioner, Trujillo and Acosta; Scott Hansen, Parsons Behle & Latimer; Jennifer Horne Huntsman, Holland & Hart; Mike Harmond, Holland & Hart; Wayne Latu, Quinn Emanuel; Kim Swallow, Adobe; Mat Parke, Parke Gordon; Cherise Bacalski, The Appellate Group; Eli McCann, Oracle; Ann Marie Taliaferro, Brown Bradshaw & Moffat; Zara Guinard, Holland & Hart; John Gygi, U.S. Small Business Administration; Miriam Allred, Farmers Insurance; David Westerly, retired; Julie McAdams, University of Utah Office of General Counsel; Beth Kennedy, Zimmerman Booker; Troy Booher, Zimmerman Booher; Engels Tejeda, Holland & Hart; Gregory Ferbrache, Ferbrache Law, P.L.L.C.; Jason Nichols, Parsons Behle & Latimer; Melanie R. Clark, Foley & Lardner LLP; James Greg Dyer, UESP my529; Whitney Krogue, Ray Quinney & Nebeker; Robert Cummings, Spencer Fane; David R. Irvine, David R. Irvine, PC; Herm Olsen, Hilyard Anderson and Olsen; Dianne Orcutt, Senior Deputy District Attorney, Salt Lake County;

Get to know the United Utah Party

Click forward to the party’s website below:

The United Utah Party is perfect to host the attorney general because it values ethical government. Specifically, the UUP wants to:

  • Increase transparency,

  • Limit partisan influence,

  • Expand voter participation, and

  • Increase government accountability.

Upcoming events

Donate to Michelle’s Campaign