Commissioner vs. Judge: Which Utah Deadline Controls Your Utah Family-Law Filing?
Most Utah family-law motions do not land on a district judge’s desk first. They land on a domestic relations commissioner’s calendar. That single fact changes the clock. Utah Rule of Civil Procedure 101 governs papers a commissioner decides. Rule 7 governs papers a district judge decides. Mix the two and you file late, lose the right to reply, or walk into a hearing with an empty record. This post explains the two tracks, how you count the days, and what to do when an enforcement motion or a “request to submit” muddies the picture.
Start with one question: who decides this paper?
Ask this before you calendar anything:
- Will a commissioner hear the request (temporary orders, parent-time, support, many modifications, most day-to-day family motions)? Use Rule 101.
- Will a district judge decide the request (dispositive motions, objections to a commissioner’s recommendation, many certified issues, motions the rules send to the judge)? Use Rule 7.
Rule 7 itself sends commissioner practice to Rule 101. If you default to the 14-days-after-filing habit from civil litigation, you might miss a commissioner deadline.
The commissioner clock runs backward from the hearing
Rule 101 ties every deadline to the hearing date, not the filing date.
| Paper | Deadline | What it means in practice |
| Motion, supporting papers, and notice of hearing | Serve at least 28 days before the hearing | You must obtain a hearing date first, then serve the packet. A motion without a hearing date does not start the 28-day clock. |
| Response (memorandum, declaration, exhibits) | File and serve at least 14 days before the hearing | Count backward from the hearing. Weekends and holidays count. |
| Reply | File and serve at least 7 days before the hearing | Limit the reply to rebuttal of new matters in the response. Do not reload the original motion. |
| Counter-motion | File and serve with the response | A response that only opposes does not get you affirmative relief. If you want different parent-time or support, file a counter-motion. |
| Reply supporting counter-motion | File and serve at least 3 business days before the hearing | If the responding party filed a counter-motion, they can file a final reply that is limited to rebuttal of new matters. |
If the other party has no lawyer and has not filed or served anything in the last 120 days, Rule 101 requires service under Rule 4—not a courtesy email to last year’s counsel.
Example. The commissioner sets a hearing for Wednesday, October 14, 2026.
– Serve the motion no later than Wednesday, September 16 (28 days before).
– File the response and any counter-motion no later than Wednesday, September 30 (14 days before).
– File the reply no later than Wednesday, October 7 (7 days before).
– File any counter-motion reply no later than Friday, October 9 (3 business days before).
The judge clock runs forward from the filing
Rule 7 runs from the date the motion is filed, not from a hearing. Many judge motions never get a hearing unless someone asks.
| Paper | Deadline | What it means in practice |
| Opposition memorandum | 14 days after the motion is filed | The clock starts on filing, even if no hearing exists. |
| Reply memorandum | 7 days after the opposition is filed | Rebut new matters only. |
| Objection to evidence in the reply | 7 days after the reply | Rule 7 builds a short evidence-objection loop that Rule 101 does not copy. |
| Request to submit for decision | After briefing is complete or time expires | If nobody files a request to submit, the judge may never rule. |
That last line matters. On the commissioner track, the hearing date forces a decision. On the judge track, silence can park the motion.
The trap that costs clients the most
A party objects to a commissioner’s recommendation or files a motion the judge will decide, then counts backward from a hearing that was never set. Rule 7 already started the 14-day opposition period on the filing date.
Calendar the decision-maker first. Then pick the rule.
Enforcement motions sit on a third track
Motions to enforce a decree (which used to be known as orders to show cause) follow Rule 7B,. Rule 7B still points you to Rule 101 when the hearing is before a commissioner. A written opposition is not required, but if you file one, file it at least 14 days before the hearing unless the court sets a different time. A reply, if any, is due at least 7 days before the hearing.
Do not assume “no written response is required” means you should arrive empty-handed. If you intend to contest contempt, make-up parent-time, or attorney fees, put the facts in a declaration on time.
How we count the days in this office
– Use calendar days, not business days, unless a specific order says otherwise (note: business days matter when calculating replies in support of a counter-motion).
– Count backward from the hearing for Rule 101.
– Count forward from filing for Rule 7.
– Serve the same day you file whenever possible, preferably during regular business hours. A paper that hits the e-filing system at 11:50 pm and lands in opposing counsel’s inbox the next morning can create a service fight you do not need.
– If the 14th or 7th day falls on a weekend or legal holiday, confirm the computation under Rule 6 before you assume you get the next business day. Do not guess.
– Build the declaration and exhibits first. The memorandum is faster once the facts are sworn.
What belongs in the packet, not in a speech at the hearing
Commissioners decide most temporary issues on the papers plus a short hearing. Rule 101 disfavors waiting until the day of the hearing to make an oral motion. If the fact is not in a declaration or exhibit filed on time, the court may treat it as missing.
File:
– A short motion that plainly states the order you want
– A declaration that tracks the facts; not a narrative dump
– If the motion involves financial issues, a financial declaration
– A summary of all exhibits you want the commissioner to rely upon. In other words, what would your emails, text messages, police reports, DCFS records, etc. show? Assume the commissioner will read your summary but might not have time to read the exhibits themselves.
Save the reply for new claims in the other side’s papers. A reply that reargues the original motion wastes the page and invites the commissioner to stop reading.
A 60-second checklist before you hit “file”
- Who hears this—commissioner or judge?
- Is this an enforcement motion under Rule 7B?
- What is the hearing date, if any?
- What is the last day to serve, not merely to draft?
- Does the other party still have counsel of record for service?
- Do I need a counter-motion, or only an opposition?
- If a judge will decide it, who will file the request to submit?
Bottom line
Utah family-law motion practice uses two clocks. Rule 101 counts back from the commissioner hearing: 28 / 14 / 7. Rule 7 counts forward from the judge filing: 14 / 7, then a request to submit. Enforcement hearings borrow from both. Get the decision-maker right and the rest of the calendar follows. Get it wrong and the best declaration in the file never gets read.
This article explains current Utah motion-practice rules for general information. It is not legal advice for your case. Rules and standing orders change, and a specific court order can set different dates. If a hearing is already set, have counsel calendar the deadlines against the notice you actually received.
Do you have questions about your Utah family law case? Contact the attorneys at Wiser Family Law at 855-254-2600 or here.
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