Elledge was one of three finalists selected by a nominating commission; Summit County manager Shayne Scott made the final selection, which the Summit County Council unanimously ratified Dec. 27.
Council Chair Roger Armstrong sat on the nominating commission, so he reviewed Elledge’s application and interviewed her.
“In the conversation with her, and having known Judge Kerr for a very long time, there are echoes of Judge Kerr when you talk to Janet about what she foresees this position, the importance of this position and how she would operate,” Armstrong said Dec. 27.
Summit County Justice Court is regarded as the most public-facing part of the local justice system, compared to Third District Court. It's where most people go to deal with minor crimes and violations.
County councilmembers said Thursday Elledge has big shoes to fill; they consider Kerr an even-handed arbiter and an ambassador for the county to the people who came through her courtroom.
Elledge thanked the county leaders who nominated, appointed and ratified her. She also thanked her colleagues at the Summit County Attorney’s Office, which she’ll now be walled-off from as a judge.
“[Judge Kerr] has a legacy, and she has provided exceptional service to the residents of Summit County. And I just hope I can follow in those footsteps,” Elledge said.
Elledge earned her J.D. at the University of Utah in 1992. She was a criminal defense attorney and then a prosecutor in West Jordan before coming to Summit County in December 2020.
She inherits a backlog of, in Armstrong's estimation, 770 cases at the notoriously busy justice court.
Elledge will take office in the New Year after Kerr officially retires Jan. 15. Before her appointment is finalized by the Utah Judicial Council and she’s sworn in, Elledge needs to take a roughly week-long orientation course that begins Jan. 8.
