Kayla has a deep-rooted passion for family law—a passion that is apparent in her work and advocacy. Kayla’s chief aim is to help make the best of a difficult time for her clients. Because of that, she works tirelessly on behalf of her clients, recognizing that family law involves the most pressing and emotional issues a client will face. Whether zealously advocating for a client in court or helping to bridge a gap in informal settlement talks, Kayla provides her clients a sense of calm throughout all stages of domestic law.
Her devotion to family law keeps Kayla active on the Family Law Executive Committee of the Utah State Bar, currently serving as the Secretary and expected to serve as the Vice-Chair and as Chair thereafter. She also serves on the subcommittee that puts together the Annual Seminar for the Family Law Section. Kayla previously worked on the committee of the New Lawyer Training Program (NLTP), where she recommended and drafted various changes to the award-winning and mandatory mentoring program for new lawyers. Kayla’s recommendations were accepted by the Committee and later the Bar Commission.
While in law school at the S.J. Quinney College of Law (University of Utah), Kayla was a Note and Comment Editor for the Utah Law Review. Kayla had two separate Law Review Notes selected for publication in the Utah Law Review, but Kayla turned down the publication of the first Note based on her fear of its impact on transgender individual’s legal rights in Utah. Her second Note, Unfinished Business of Repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”: The Military’s Unconstitutional Ban on Transgender Individuals, was published in 2015 in the Utah Law Review. Kayla participated in Traynor Moot Court, where she and her teammate rose to the top of the selection process, arguing in front of the law school student body against one other team before three sitting judges. Kayla twice won the best-oralist during the selection process, and her team won third-place best brief.
During law school, Kayla clerked for the Utah Court of Appeals, a sitting Third District Court Judge, and also for Legal Aid Society of Salt Lake City, where she successfully represented dozens of individuals seeking Protective Orders. Kayla won the David T. Lewis Award for her clerkship work.
After graduating from Westminster College, but before law school, Kayla was a paralegal for a local domestic family law attorney, where she learned the ins-and-outs of legal practice. She also volunteered as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) during that time, where she was appointed by judges to assist children in their journey through the complexities of the foster care system.
Kayla learned in junior high school that she wanted to be a family law attorney after watching her best friend’s family struggle through a tragic and messy divorce. Kayla quickly realized that good representation makes all the difference. Kayla is dedicated to her clients, and her compassion for them and their situation is apparent.
Read about client’s experiences in working with Kayla here:
Super Lawyers Rising Star, 2022–2024
Utah Business, Legal Elite, 2022
Avvo Clients’ Choice Award, 2019–2021, 2023
National Academy of Family Law Attorneys, Inc., Top 10 Under 40 Award (multiple years)
Traynor Moot Court, Finalist (twice named best oralist; third place best brief), 2015
David T. Lewis Award, Recipient, 2015
Service Award, S.J. Quinney College of Law (University of Utah), 2015
Unsettled Issue in a Divorce Suit: Should Granted, Unvested Stock Options Constitute a Marital Asset or a Separate Asset?, Utah State Bar Journal, Jan/Feb 2021, at 17, available at old.utahbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Jan_Feb_2021_FINAL.pdf
Unfinished Business of Repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”: The Military’s Unconstitutional Ban on Transgender Individuals, 2015 Utah Law Review 721, available at dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol2015/iss3/4/
What Employers and Employees Need to Know about the FMLA, Zions Community Magazine (January 2016), at 94, available at zionsbank.com/content/dam/zfnb/zionsbank/documents/community/community-JanFeb-2016.pdf.
Trial Techniques, Utah State Bar CLE (March 11, 2024)
Divorce and Real Estate, Presentation to realtors at Coldwell Banker Homes, Salt Lake City, Utah (May 9, 2023)
How to Avoid being "Hometowned"– Practicing Family Law in the Various Districts, Utah State Bar CLE, St. George, Utah (April 7, 2023)
Teachings from the Family Law Sages, Utah State Bar CLE (September 12, 2022) (moderator)
Work Relationship Health: Data-Driven Tips on Building Relationships from Mentees-Turned-Mentors, Women Lawyers of Utah Retreat in Park City, Utah (May 7, 2022)
Keeping Up with the Recent Changes in Family Law Rules and Statutes, Utah State Bar CLE (November 22, 2021)
Handling Stock Options in a Divorce Case, Utah State Bar Summer Convention in Sun Valley, Idaho (July 29, 2021)
Amendments to the New Lawyer Training Program, Utah State Bar Summer Convention in Sun Valley, Idaho (July 20, 2019)
“Kayla Quam and her staff provided efficient, succinct, and insightful counsel. . . . Our case was settled under very favorable terms largely due to the support from her and Shannon Gahan. Kayla has a rare level of experience that she leverages to produce tactics and backup plans (and backup plans for backup plans) to cover virtually all possible outcomes optimally, given your situation. It would be challenging for me to be more pleased with an attorney or her staff.”
–Devin Ekins
“Though my case was daunting, complex and intense, Kayla Quam was only incredible. From the start through the very end, she and her amazing team exhibited unparalleled dedication to the law and commitment to me as her client. Kayla operates with the highest level of integrity, and communicates with a warmth and professionalism that is commonly wanting among society at large. She brings her best to her clients and she literally worked miracles. . . . She has a vast knowledge of the law, a willingness to do whatever was possible within the law to bring about the desired results, and she stays calm under pressure . . . She is a fierce and mighty force to reckon with in court.”
–Julia L.
“Kayla is an amazing attorney[,] and she was such an invaluable resource to me as I was going through a divorce. She is incredibly knowledgeable, compassionate and clear; she helped me navigate a really difficult situation with confidence and assurance. I found myself thinking on many occasions how grateful I was to have Kayla and her legal team working on my behalf.”
–-Valerie Greer
I feel so fortunate to have hired Kayla to represent me in my recent divorce. Kayla is smart, incisive, and kind. An excellent problem solver, Kayla is a strong champion and fierce advocate of her clients[‘] rights. Kayla is highly respected in her field and maintains unruffled, professional decorum with her peers throughout potentially contentious interactions. If you have the good fortune of securing Kayla as your attorney, rest assured you are in the best of hands.
–Lisa
