Todd J. Hutton

Background

Todd J. Hutton was born in 1964. His professional life developed in Nebraska, where he worked in Omaha and Papillion and became associated with the state's county-court system.

Education

Hutton received a Bachelor of Science degree from Miami University in 1987 and a Juris Doctor from Creighton University School of Law in 1990. Miami University, founded in 1809 in Oxford, Ohio, is one of the oldest public universities in the United States and has a long liberal-arts and undergraduate teaching tradition.

Creighton University School of Law, located in Omaha, Nebraska, is a Jesuit law school whose educational tradition combines professional legal training with an emphasis on ethics, service, and justice. Hutton's legal education preceded his admission to practice and his work in county government and private law.

Career

Hutton was admitted to the bar in 1990 and served as a deputy Douglas County attorney in Omaha from 1990 to 1995. The Douglas County Attorney's Office is the county's prosecutorial legal office, placing his early practice within Nebraska's public-law and criminal-justice system.

From 1995 to 1998, he practiced law privately in Papillion. In 1998 he became a judge of the Sarpy County Court in Nebraska's 2nd Judicial District, which serves Cass, Otoe, and Sarpy counties. County courts are trial courts of limited jurisdiction within the Nebraska Judicial Branch, handling matters that include misdemeanor criminal cases, traffic cases, probate, small claims, and other proceedings assigned by state law.

As a judge, Hutton participated in Nebraska judicial initiatives concerning guardianships and conservatorships, court technology, media access, juvenile justice, probate education, and public understanding of the courts. He chaired the media education subcommittee of the Nebraska Supreme Court's PEOPLE Committee and taught at the National Judicial College from 2002 to 2006. He also served as a performance judge for school mock-trial programs and spoke to students, journalists, lawyers, court personnel, and community groups about Nebraska's court system.

Achievements

• Hutton chaired the media education subcommittee of the Nebraska Supreme Court's PEOPLE Committee, an initiative designed to improve public understanding of the courts and strengthen communication between the judiciary and those who report on it.

• He served as teaching faculty at the National Judicial College from 2002 to 2006 and participated in judicial education concerning court administration, media coverage, guardianships, conservatorships, probate, and court technology.

• He contributed to Nebraska's public legal education through mock-trial judging, school and university presentations, journalists' workshops, and seminars for lawyers and court personnel.

Works

• feature article

  • Nebraskans Care: Changes in Guardianship and Conservatorship Laws and Rules Effective January 1, 2012

    (Co-authored feature article in The Nebraska Lawyer explai...)

    2012

Membership

Hutton has belonged to the Nebraska State Bar Association, the Sarpy County Bar Association, the Omaha Bar Association, the Nebraska County Judges Association, and the Robert M. Spire Inn of Court. His professional service also included the Nebraska State Bar Foundation and several Nebraska judicial committees concerned with guardianships, conservatorships, court rules, public education, and criminal justice.

The bar associations support professional standards, legal education, and collegial work among lawyers, while the Robert M. Spire Inn of Court promotes professionalism and mentoring in the legal community. Hutton's committee service connected his judicial work with broader efforts to improve court administration, public information, and protections for vulnerable adults.

• Member.

  Nebraska State Bar Association , United States

• Founding member and Fellow.

  Nebraska State Bar Foundation , United States

  2008 - present

• Member.

  Sarpy County Bar Association , United States

• Member of the Memorial Committee.

  Omaha Bar Association , United States

• Emeritus Master Judicial Member; president from 2011 to 2012.

  Robert M. Spire Inn of Court , United States

• Member of the executive, probate, public education and relations, and judicial education subcommittees.

  Nebraska County Judges Association , United States

• Executive Committee member.

  Nebraska Supreme Court Commission on Guardianships and Conservatorships , United States

• Former member and chair of its Legislative and Court Rules subcommittee.

  Joint Review Committee on the Status of Adult Guardianships and Conservatorships in the Nebraska Court System , United States

• Chair of the media education subcommittee.

  Nebraska Supreme Court PEOPLE Committee , United States

• Former vice-chair.

  Sarpy County Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee , United States

• Member of the advisory council.

  Office of Public Guardian Advisory Council , United States

References

• Hon. Todd J. Hutton Official Nebraska Judicial Branch profile documenting Hutton's education, legal practice, county-court judgeship, professional affiliations, committee service, awards, teaching, public education, and publications.