Jojo C. Liu
Official evaluation
From Utah's Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission, copied from the 2026 Voter Information Pamphlet, Office of the Lieutenant Governor of Utah, page 76. The determination, vote count, standards, narrative, response and biography are the pamphlet's words; the labels are ours.
Commission narrative
Survey Respondent Recommendation: 83% of survey respondents recommend Judge Liu for retention
Performance Measures: Survey scores are analyzed for statistical significance to determine if the judge scored well above, above, consistent with, below, or well below their justice court peers.
Consistent with peers: Legal Ability, Integrity & Judicial Temperament, Administrative Skills, Procedural Fairness
Respondent and Observer Feedback: Both respondents and courtroom observers admire Judge Liu’s patient and respectful demeanor, describing her as professional and caring. Both groups underscore her preparedness in court. Both appreciate her willingness to let participants express themselves and be heard. Survey results and some comments indicate that the judge should strengthen her legal skills, particularly in following, or explaining departures from, legal precedent. All four observers report confidence that they would be treated fairly if they were to appear in Judge Liu’s court.
More on how judges are evaluated: judges.utah.gov
Biography
As printed in the state's 2026 Voter Information Pamphlet.
Judge Jojo Liu was appointed to the Salt Lake City Justice Court by Mayor Erin Mendenhall in 2022. Prior to her appointment, Judge Liu served as Director of Salt Lake County’s Office of Criminal Justice Initiatives and Director of the Salt Lake County Criminal Justice Advisory Council. Before joining Salt Lake County, she served as the Assistant Director of the Utah Indigent Defense Commission. From 2007 to 2016, Judge Liu was a Clinical Professor of Law and Co-Director of the Juvenile Justice Clinic at Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles. From 2002 to 2007, she practiced law at Morrison and Foerster, where she maintained a civil litigation practice and later specialized in white-collar defense, with a focus on matters involving the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Judge Liu began her legal career as a Skadden Fellow at Legal Services for Children in New York City. Judge Liu graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1996 and earned her Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in 2000, where she was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.
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