Community Involvement

DJP believes in a balanced life for its attorneys and in giving back to the community. Our attorneys are involved with and support many worthwhile causes in the profession, in the community, in academia, and with humanitarian concerns. With each attorney doing what he or she can to make the world a better place, DJP is having a measurable impact in the communities where we live.

In the academic community, our attorneys have been actively involved to improve educational opportunities. They serve on the Board of Trustees of the S. J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah (Paul Durham, currently President of the Board of Trustees) and on the alumni board of the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University (Kevin Pinegar and Tadiana Jones). Our attorneys and their families provide substantial service to our local schools by serving on school community councils, on parent teacher committees, and otherwise volunteering in classes. For example, they have served on the Bonneville Elementary Community Council (Mark Gibb); and for many years on the Steering Committee for the Lowell ELP Program, and later as its chairperson (Paul Durham).

Our attorneys serve or have served on the boards of trustees of non-profit corporations and other organizations, such as the Pioneer Memorial Theatre Company (Paul Durham); the Utah Technology Council (Jeff Jones); the National Association of Women Business Owners (Gretta Spendlove); the Utah European Council (Kevin Pinegar); the Weber Coalition for a Healthy Community (Doug Taggart); the Performing Arts Coalition (David Arrington); Red Cross of Utah, Ogden Chapter (Doug Taggart); Lake Bonneville Council (now Trappers Trail Council) of the Boy Scouts of America (Doug Taggart); the DinosaurAH!torium (Lyle Drake); and the World Trade Association of Utah (Kevin Pinegar).

DJP attorneys have been involved with creating and/or serving on the boards of charitable foundations, such as the St. George Dixie Elks Charitable Foundation (Chris Engstrom); LDS Foundation Professional Advisory Council, St. George (Lyle Drake); Primary Children’s Medical Center Planned Gifts Committee (Doug Taggart); the Ogden School Foundation (Doug Taggart); and the Utah Heritage Foundation (Ken Cannon).

In the community of the Bar, many of our attorneys have held leadership positions in the state and local bar associations.

Our attorneys do pro bono work for a number of worthy causes, such as the St. George Musical Theatre (Chris Engstrom); Save Our Schools (Paul Durham and Mark Gibb); NAMI Utah (affiliate of the National Institute of Mental Health) (David Arrington); pro bono mediations for the Third District Court for Summit County (Steve Gordon); and many others. To further demonstrate and to fulfill the ethical obligation we feel towards pro bono work, we generously contribute each year to “and Justice for all” on behalf of each of our attorneys. “and Justice for all” is a fund-raising organization sanctioned by the Utah Supreme Court to raise funds for a number of worthwhile organizations that deliver legal services directly to poor and disadvantaged individuals throughout the state. These organizations include Legal Aid Society of Salt Lake, Utah Legal Services, the Disability Law Center, Multi-Cultural Legal Center, and others.

We sponsor and financially support a number of community and charitable organizations and causes. These include the Utah Technology Council, Muscular Dystrophy Association, S. J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah, J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University, St. George Fire Department, Children’s Justice Center, American Cancer Society, Dixie Junior Livestock Program, Utah Bankers Association, The Foundation of Dixie Regional Medical Center, The Pro Bono Initiative, and Justice for all, Pioneer Memorial Theatre, Troy Fund for Leukemia Research, Common Thread, March of Dimes, Rescue Mission of Salt Lake, Your Community Connection of Ogden, and many others. We are a proud participant in the annual Law Day 5K Run, which raises funds to provide legal services to the disadvantaged.