In 2012, Hatch recommended and supported District Court Judge Robert Shelby, a Barack Obama appointee, though Utah Senator Mike Lee voted against him in the Judiciary Committee. In 2013 Shelby overturned Utah's ballot Amendment 3, which constitutionally defined marriage as between a man and a woman.Shelby confirmed by Senate as Utah federal judge , Herald Extra. September 23, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2017.
