Millcreek voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to retain Judge Todd Shaughnessy on the Third District Court bench. He has held the seat since 2011.

Shaughnessy serves on the trial court covering Salt Lake, Summit and Tooele counties, the district that includes Millcreek. Governor Gary Herbert appointed him in May 2011. The ballot asks a single question: whether to retain Shaughnessy.

Candidate information

  • Office: Utah District Court Judge, District 3
  • Race: Retain Shaughnessy? (nonpartisan)
  • Election: Nov. 3, 2026, Utah General Election
  • Ballot status: Certified for the ballot
  • Education: juris doctor from the University of Utah, where he served as managing editor of the Utah Law Review
  • Professional memberships: Fellow in the American Bar Foundation; past president of the Salt Lake County Bar Association; Master of the Bench in the David K. Watkiss Sutherland Inn of Court

Experience and public service

Before joining the bench, Shaughnessy clerked at the Utah Supreme Court, then practiced as an associate at Van Cott, Bagley, Cornwall & McCarthy and later as a partner at Snell & Wilmer, according to his 2020 Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission report.

Since his appointment, Shaughnessy has taken on leadership roles within the judiciary. He serves on the Utah Judicial Council, the governing body for Utah's court system, and on the Utah Judicial Conduct Commission, according to the Utah Courts website.

Performance record

The Utah Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission, known as JPEC, recommended Shaughnessy's retention in 2020 with a unanimous 12-0 vote. He passed all eight performance standards the commission evaluates. Ninety-six percent of survey respondents recommended him for retention, according to the commission's report.

Shaughnessy received the Judicial Excellence Award from the Utah State Bar's Litigation Section five consecutive years: 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.

This profile was built from publicly available sources including the Utah Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission's 2020 retention report, the Utah Courts judicial biography page and BallotReady election data.