Attorney Greg Skordas says the June 23 subpoena from Kouri Richins’ defense team asks him to turn over all of his communications with Eric Richins’ family.
But those records are subject to victim-advocate privilege and shouldn’t be released, Skordas said in his July 8 court petition to block the subpoena.
The court papers also claim the defense wants copies of the Salt Lake City-based lawyer’s retainer agreement and checks payable to him from Eric Richins’ family.
Such records don’t exist, he says, because he’s serving as a pro bono spokesperson and victim advocate for the family, not as an attorney.
Kouri Richins was arrested and charged with Eric Richins’ murder in May 2023. The Kamas Valley resident died of a fentanyl overdose in 2022, and Kouri Richins wrote a children’s book about grieving.
Skordas told KPCW he became Eric Richins’ family’s spokesperson and victim advocate shortly after Kouri Richins was charged, and he has appeared in local, state and national media reports.
KPCW obtained a copy of Skordas’ petition from public court records. No copy of the subpoena from the defense, however, was listed or publicly available in the same records as of July 9.
Also included in the subpoena is the defense’s request for access to all communications between Skordas and Summit County prosecutors and specific investigators. The petition says Skordas has never spoken to the named investigators.
He also claims that “almost none” of the communications with prosecutors — emails, letters, text messages or other correspondence — have anything to do with, or relevance to, the pending Kouri Richins murder trial.
The subpoena is seeking communications with prosecutors back to March 3, 2022, the day before Eric Richins’ death. Skordas says it’s “unduly burdensome” to produce three years and three months of communications.
He says Kathy Nester, the defense attorney who served him, should be sanctioned by Judge Richard Mrazik for not taking measures to make sure the subpoena isn’t burdensome. He says the subpoena should have been limited to communications relevant to Kouri Richins' case.
Utah state courts say a sanction can include, “but is not limited to, lost earnings and a reasonable attorney fee.” The fee would apparently go to Skordas.
Kouri Richins’ defense team declined to comment.
Skordas wants a hearing about the subpoena issue; Mrazik has yet to schedule one or to issue a ruling.
