Ms. Sarah Elizabeth Spencer
SpencerWillson, PLLC
Language(s):
English
Sarah Spencer | Salt Lake City Personal Injury Lawyer
Main Office
257 East 200 South
Ste 1100
Salt Lake City, UT 84111
Office Hours
Monday - Friday8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
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About Sarah
Sarah is an experienced trial attorney, litigator, and appellate advocate. She practices law in Utah and Colorado and in the federal Ninth and Tenth Circuit Courts of Appeal. Sarah graduated from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in 2004. She started law school at the age of eighteen and obtained her Juris Doctorate degree shortly after she turned 21. After serving two clerkships, Sarah joined Christensen & Jensen in 2007 and became a shareholder of the firm in 2014.
Sarah serves as lead trial counsel in all kinds of commercial and business tort cases. Her experience is broad; she regularly handles lawsuits alleging breach of contract, common law and statutory fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition, trademark/copyright infringement, and trade dress violations, among other claims and causes of action. Sarah has successfully prosecuted and defended against emergency motions for injunctive relief and has first-chaired evidentiary proceedings in relation to such motions. She has won numerous cases by summary judgment after years of hard-fought litigation.
Sarah also defends the interests of businesses that are sued for product defects, breaches of warranty, and negligence. She is very familiar with all aspects of Utah product liability law, theories, and defenses. She has defended cases involving a diverse array of products such as home and RV appliances, motor vehicles, trailers, watercraft, vehicle components, exercise equipment, medical devices, window blinds, pharmaceuticals, ammunition, farm implements, complex industrial machinery, pressurized bottles, fire suppression systems, toilets/sinks/plumbing materials, and chemical solvents, among others. She also defends businesses and businesspeople sued for negligence in all forms including professional liability, premises liability, trucking, and motor vehicle accidents, and wrongful death claims.
Sarah is an experienced appellate lawyer. She has been counsel of record in more than thirty appeals. Her experience includes interlocutory appeals, appeals of injunctions, appeals of summary judgment orders, and post-trial appeals. She handles all facets of appellate work. She is experienced preparing merits briefs, petitions for interlocutory appeal, motions for 54(b) certification, petitions for certiorari, and amicus briefs. In connection with her focus on appellate work, Sarah served as chair of the Appellate Practice Section of the Utah State Bar in the 2017-2018 bar year. She has been active in the Appellate Advocacy Committee of DRI (Defense Research Institute) since 2014. Sarah is currently serving as the seminar planning chair for the DRI Appellate Advocacy Committee.
Sarah has received numerous professional accolades. She has received the highest possible AV–rating from Martindale–Hubbell since 2012. Since 2010, Sarah has been selected as a Mountain States Super Lawyers “Rising Star” and an “Up and Coming” lawyer by Utah Business Magazine’s “Legal Elite.” From 2016 through 2018, Sarah’s peers selected her for inclusion in “The Best Lawyers in America” in the practice area of commercial litigation. In 2017, Utah Business Magazine named her one of Utah’s “Forty under 40” young professionals.
Sarah serves as lead trial counsel in all kinds of commercial and business tort cases. Her experience is broad; she regularly handles lawsuits alleging breach of contract, common law and statutory fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition, trademark/copyright infringement, and trade dress violations, among other claims and causes of action. Sarah has successfully prosecuted and defended against emergency motions for injunctive relief and has first-chaired evidentiary proceedings in relation to such motions. She has won numerous cases by summary judgment after years of hard-fought litigation.
Sarah also defends the interests of businesses that are sued for product defects, breaches of warranty, and negligence. She is very familiar with all aspects of Utah product liability law, theories, and defenses. She has defended cases involving a diverse array of products such as home and RV appliances, motor vehicles, trailers, watercraft, vehicle components, exercise equipment, medical devices, window blinds, pharmaceuticals, ammunition, farm implements, complex industrial machinery, pressurized bottles, fire suppression systems, toilets/sinks/plumbing materials, and chemical solvents, among others. She also defends businesses and businesspeople sued for negligence in all forms including professional liability, premises liability, trucking, and motor vehicle accidents, and wrongful death claims.
Sarah is an experienced appellate lawyer. She has been counsel of record in more than thirty appeals. Her experience includes interlocutory appeals, appeals of injunctions, appeals of summary judgment orders, and post-trial appeals. She handles all facets of appellate work. She is experienced preparing merits briefs, petitions for interlocutory appeal, motions for 54(b) certification, petitions for certiorari, and amicus briefs. In connection with her focus on appellate work, Sarah served as chair of the Appellate Practice Section of the Utah State Bar in the 2017-2018 bar year. She has been active in the Appellate Advocacy Committee of DRI (Defense Research Institute) since 2014. Sarah is currently serving as the seminar planning chair for the DRI Appellate Advocacy Committee.
Sarah has received numerous professional accolades. She has received the highest possible AV–rating from Martindale–Hubbell since 2012. Since 2010, Sarah has been selected as a Mountain States Super Lawyers “Rising Star” and an “Up and Coming” lawyer by Utah Business Magazine’s “Legal Elite.” From 2016 through 2018, Sarah’s peers selected her for inclusion in “The Best Lawyers in America” in the practice area of commercial litigation. In 2017, Utah Business Magazine named her one of Utah’s “Forty under 40” young professionals.
Call today to learn more about my fee structure.
Experience
Shareholder Attorney
Christensen & Jensen, P.C.
Present
Salt Lake City, UT
Admission
Utah
2006
Colorado
2004
Education
Metropolitan State University of Denver
Bachelors (Psychology | History | Political Science)
1999
Recognitions & Achievements
Associations
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American Bar Association
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Defense Research Institute
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Appellate Advocacy Committee –2008 / Present
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Seminar planning chair2018-2019
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Co–chair of marketing and membership subcommittees –2015 / 2018
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Young Lawyers Committee –2008 / 2015
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Co–Chair of marketing Subcommittee –2014 / 2015
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Co–Vice-Chair of marketing subcommittee –2013 / 2014
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Co–Chair of membership Subcommittee –2012 / 2013
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Vice–Chair of membership Subcommittee –2011 / 2012
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Utah State Bar
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Appellate Practice Section –2006 / Present
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Section Chair –2017 / 2018
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Section vice-chair2016-2018
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Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee –2010 / 2015
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Committee Co-Chair –2012 / 2015
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Chair, Public Relations Subcommittee –2011 / 2012
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Young Lawyers Division –2006 / 2013
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Executive Council Member and Co-Chair –2010 / 2013
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Serving Our Seniors Committee –2011 / 2013
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Wills for Heroes Committee –2008 / 2011
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Co-Chair of Utah State Bar Summer Convention in Sun Valley, Idaho2009
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Utah Law Related Education
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Panel Judge High School Mock Trial Competition –2008 / 2009 / 2011 / 2014
Honors / Awards
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Super Lawyer Super Lawyers2016
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AV Preeminent Martindale-Hubbell2016
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Rising Star Mountain States Super Lawyers2010 - 2013
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Up and Coming Lawyer Utah Legal Elite2010 - 2011
Notable Work
Publications
Guest Speaker "A Conversation With..." a DRI podcast, May 8, .
2020
Speaker: "Hot Topics in Product Liability" strict liability against Amazon in the Third Circuit and the slippery slope implications, September 27, .
2019
Author: "Is the Record Really Complete?" published by the National Foundation for Judicial Excellence, Volume 3 Issue 1 June 6, .
2018
Speaker and moderator, DRI Trial Tactics and Appellate Advocacy Seminar joint session, Mock Oral Argument Regarding a Sports Gaming Case, March 15, , Las Vegas Nevada.
2018
Author, “How Appellate Courts Consider New Evidence on Appeal,” published in For the Defense, February .
2017
er, “Accuracy and Clarity Promote Readability,” A Short Legal Writing Course for Lawyers, Utah State Bar, Salt Lake City, Utah, November 10,
Present / 2016
er, “Case Law Update: Recent Supreme Court and Tenth Circuit Cases Interpreting the Qualified Immunity Defense to Civil Rights Claims,” Utah Municipal Attorneys Association Spring Conference, St. George, Utah, May 6,
Present / 2015
er, “Unauthorized Practice of Law in Utah and Beyond,” Utah Paralegal Association Conference, Utah Law & Justice Center, Salt Lake City, Utah, June 20,
Present / 2014
Panel Moderator, Civility and Professionalism in the Courtroom, Utah Young Lawyers Division Leadership Conference, Waldorf Astoria, Park City, Utah, November 8,
2013
Author, "Young Lawyers – Be on the Lookout for the Unauthorized Practice of Law," The Whisper, DRI Young Lawyers Committee Newsletter, Vol. 9:10, October
2013
Author, ALFA International Transportation Compendium, Utah Update,
2012
er, "What Local Government Lawyers Need to Know About Identifying and Defining Their Client: An Ethical and Practical Approach," Fall Conference, Utah Municipal Attorneys Association, September
Present / 2012
er, "Civil Court Boot Camp," National Business Institute,
Present / 2011
Author, “United States Supreme Court to Determine Whether Public Law School's Nondiscrimination Policy Violates First Amendment: Christian Legal Society v. Martinez,” The Voice, Defense Research Institute E-Newsletter, Vol. 9:20,
2010
Author, “The Importance of Pro Bono Legal Services: Why Young Lawyers Should Seek Out Rewarding Pro Bono Opportunities,” The Whisper, DRI Young Lawyers Committee Newsletter, Vol. 1:12,
2009
Author, “The United States Supreme Court Takes a Closer Look at Qualified Immunity: Pearson v. Callahan and its Implications for Constitutional Tort Defense,” The Whisper, DRI Young Lawyers Committee Newsletter, Vol. 1:4,
2009
Author, “Vicarious Liability of Motor Carrier Employers for Punitive Damages Imposed as a Result of Employee Drivers' Conduct: The Restatement's Complicity Approach," ALFA International Transportation Update, Vol. :4,
2008 / 2008
Co-author, Petition for Writ of Certiorari to United States Supreme Court, Pearson v. Callahan, WL 857, cert. granted March 24, , 128 S.Ct.
2007 / 4300 / 2008 / 1702