The International Center for Law and Religion Studies is honored to announce that noted Salt Lake City attorney Ruth Lybbert Renlund has accepted an appointment as a Center Senior Fellow. Formerly president of the law firm Dewsnup, King & Olsen, where she practiced plaintiff civil litigation for 20 years, she was associate attorney general of the state of Utah, served on the board of directors for the Deseret News, Murdock Travel, and the Workers Compensation Fund of Utah, served as chair of the Judicial Conduct Commission for the State of Utah, and was the first female president of the Utah Trial Lawyers Association. She holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Utah and a juris doctorate from the University of Maryland.
In February 2016 she delivered a lecture "Think about It: The Value of Law School" at the Women in Law Luncheon at BYU Law School. Introducing her at this event, Professor RonNell Andersen Jones noted Ruth Lybbert Renlund's importance as a role model, her reputation for courtesy, and her exemplary professional and personal life. "She has been praised by those who know her personally and professionally." said Professor Jones, "as a strong and talented litigator who never lost sight of the need for stability in the profession."
Ruth received the Exemplary Leadership Award from the J. Reuben Clark Law Society at the society's 2017 Annual Fireside in Salt Lake City, where she was keynote speaker.
Ruth is married to Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She has served with her husband in assignments including five years in the presidency of the Church's Africa Southeast Area, with headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa. The Renlunds are the parents of a daughter, Ashley.