Can I Get a Cash Advance on My Lawsuit in Utah?

By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

Utah’s Maintenance Funding Practices Act

Utah passed the Maintenance Funding Practices Act in 2020 as H.B. 312, signed March 24, 2020 and effective May 12, 2020. It is Utah Code Title 13, Chapter 57. In 2026 the Legislature rewrote much of it in H.B. 280, effective May 6, 2026, and changed registration and penalties in S.B. 38, which the Division’s 2026 notice says also took effect May 6, 2026. The rules below are from H.B. 280’s enrolled text.

Under Utah Code 13-57-102, a consumer is an individual who resides or is domiciled in Utah, a plaintiff with a legal claim in Utah, or the estate in a wrongful death case. A consumer maintenance funding agreement is a “non-recourse transaction” in which the provider buys a contingent right to part of the potential proceeds and pays the money directly to the consumer. H.B. 280 also added rules for commercial funding of lawsuits, which this page does not cover. For death claims, see our page on wrongful death lawsuit funding.

Registration and reports

Every consumer maintenance funding provider must register with the Division of Consumer Protection and renew each year, paying a fee the Division sets (13-57-201). Before signing any consumer agreement, the provider must file its contract template with the Division (13-57-202(2)). By April 1 each year it must file a report under oath on the number of agreements, the money funded and the returns (13-57-203). The Division’s notice adds that S.B. 38 requires providers to update their information within 30 days when it becomes incorrect and lets the Division deny, suspend or revoke registrations.

What Utah does and does not limit on price

Utah has no ceiling on the rate or total charges. It does set two price rules in 13-57-301:

• the agreement may not require payment “in an amount determined as a percentage of the recovery from the legal action”
• the provider may not charge a prepayment penalty or fee

The first rule means the amount owed has to come from a formula other than a share of your settlement, and the second means you can pay early without an added fee. With no cap, the contract’s numbers are the only limit, so compare offers using our page on how much pre-settlement funding costs.

What the agreement must contain

Section 13-57-301 requires the agreement to be in plain language the average consumer can understand without professional help, and to be fully completed before you sign. If you have more than one agreement, it must show the cumulative amounts owed. Section 13-57-302 requires:

• a statement in capital letters, at least 12-point type, that the funded amount and charges are paid “ONLY FROM THE PROCEEDS OF YOUR LEGAL CLAIM”
• a statement that the provider may not take part in deciding whether, when or for how much the case settles, and may not interfere with your lawyer’s independent professional judgment
• the cancellation notice
• a warning above the signature line

Cancelling within 10 business days

H.B. 280 raised the cancellation window from 5 to 10 business days “after the day on which the consumer and consumer maintenance funding provider enter the agreement” (13-57-301(1)(d)). To cancel, return the full amount you received, either by delivering the provider’s uncashed check to its office in person or by sending it by insured, certified or registered U.S. mail to the address in the agreement as the uncashed check, a registered or certified check, or a money order. Agreements signed before May 6, 2026 may still carry the older 5-day period, so check yours. Our right to cancel page compares states.

Your signed certification about your lawyer

Utah puts the certification in your hands. Under 13-57-301(3) and (4), you must sign a certification stating that you reviewed the disclosures with your attorney, that you have an attorney on a contingency fee, and that you direct your attorney to receive and pay out the proceeds through a trust account or settlement fund as the agreement says. The agreement is “null and void if the consumer does not provide the acknowledgment,” though it remains valid if you later fire your attorney. Our page on whether your lawyer has to sign compares this with states that require the lawyer’s own signature.

What a Utah provider may not do

Under 13-57-202, a consumer maintenance funding provider may not:

• pay or accept commissions or referral fees with attorneys, health care providers or their affiliates, or refer you to an attorney or health care provider other than through a local or state bar referral service
• attempt to influence the conduct, settlement or resolution of your case
• try to get you to waive a remedy or right, including the right to a jury trial
• make an offer to you if the lawyer or firm that took or referred your case has a financial interest in the provider
• contract, directly or indirectly, with a foreign entity of concern or a foreign country or person of concern

Section 13-57-504 says only attorney’s liens tied to the claim and Medicare or other statutory liens come ahead of the provider’s lien on your recovery. For how payoffs affect what you take home, see does pre-settlement funding hurt my settlement.

Penalties and how to reach the Division

If a provider willfully violates the chapter, the agreement is unenforceable by the provider or anyone who takes it over (13-57-501). The Division’s notice says S.B. 38 raised penalty amounts and expanded the Division’s enforcement authority; it does not list the amounts, and we did not find them in H.B. 280.

To report a problem, contact the Utah Division of Consumer Protection at (801) 530-6601, or toll-free in Utah at (800) 721-7233, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. Its mailing address is PO Box 146704, Salt Lake City, UT 84114-6704, and its office is on the second floor of the Heber M. Wells Building, 160 East 300 South, Salt Lake City. The Division’s notice lists dcpregistrations@utah.gov for registration questions and says the Division cannot give legal advice.

Your deadline to sue in Utah

A funding agreement does not stop the clock on your claim. Utah’s four-year catch-all period covers actions “for relief not otherwise provided for by law” (Utah Code 78B-2-307(4)), and other sections set different periods for particular kinds of claims. Ask a Utah lawyer which deadline applies to yours.

What to ask before you sign

• Is your company registered with the Utah Division of Consumer Protection for this year?
• Is this the contract template you filed with the Division?
• What will I owe at each six-month mark, and is there any point when charges stop growing?
• What is my exact last day to cancel under the 10-business-day rule?
• Do you or anyone you work with have a financial tie to my lawyer’s firm?

The state law table compares Utah with other states, and the lawsuit cash advance guide explains how these advances work.

Common questions

Related pages

Cash advance on a lawsuit · Laws by state · Injury law FAQs

Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 7, 2026.