Nathan Whittaker - Heber City, UT

Overview

Nathan Whittaker is an experienced litigation attorney with Orland Righi Fitch in Salt Lake City Utah. Nathan is a native Utahn, having grown up in a small town in southern Utah as the son of a dairy farmer. After graduating in 2003 from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon with a B.A. in International Affairs, he returned to Utah and received his law degree from Brigham Young University in 2007. He was admitted to the Utah State Bar in 2008.

Nathan focuses on civil litigation and appellate practice in his legal work. (Alternatively, Nathan's legal practice is focused on civil litigation and civil appeals / appellate law/appeals work.) Having briefed and argued 16 appeals and over 80 dispositive motions, Nathan has developed a reputation for excellence in legal research and writing and has been praised by judges for his attention to detail. He is adept at taking the most complex legal principles and facts and synthesizing them into simple yet persuasive arguments. He has also served as a member of the Utah Supreme Court's Advisory Committee on Civil Procedure, which works with the Utah Supreme Court to decide the rules that govern the state trial courts.

Nathan's civil litigation practice includes the defense of business owners, construction companies, and trucking companies and their drivers. He handles a wide variety of insurance defense cases ranging from personal automobile accidents to catastrophic injury and wrongful death. He serves on the firm's rapid response team for Utah. His practice also includes insurance coverage and bad faith. His attention to detail and ability to synthesize information quickly serves his clients well not only in rapid responses but also in complex litigation.

Before attending law school, Nathan spent two years abroad in Japan, where he learned to speak Japanese fluently. While there, he also learned the importance of keeping things simple and uncluttered-a principle he strives to apply to his legal practice. In his spare time, Nathan enjoys being in the outdoors, whether hiking in the Wasatch Mountains, exploring the Redrock Canyons of Southern Utah, or just gardening in his backyard. He sings baritone in the Salt Lake Men's Choir and volunteers for the Utah Aids Foundation.

Representative matters:

• Successfully appealed a jury's award of damages before the Utah Court of Appeals and the Utah Supreme Court, resulting in a settlement for his client that was over ten times the amount of the original damages award.
• Conducted a bench trial to equitably divide assets, resulting in a judgment in his client's favor on all issues as well as an award of attorney fees.
• Moved for and obtained summary judgment declaring his client was entitled to the entirety of a $500,000 life insurance policy and successfully defended this judgment on appeal before the Utah Supreme Court.
• Successfully appealed the district court's judgment in a boundary dispute case before the Utah Court of Appeals, resulting in a judgment in his client's favor as well as an award of attorney fees.
• Successfully moved for dismissal of a $200,000 contract claim at minimal cost to the client.