Good Samaritan law

First Aid & CPR Utah

The Good Samaritan: compassion and protection

Drawn from the Bible (Luke 10:25-37), the parable of the Good Samaritan tells of a traveller left for dead who is rescued by a stranger that tends to him and sees to his care. Beyond its religious context, it carries a universal message: the moral duty to help others in danger, through compassion and altruism.

Inspired by this principle, many so-called Good Samaritan laws have been enacted around the world to protect those who assist in good faith during an emergency from legal action. The exact scope of that protection, however, varies from one jurisdiction to another: here is what the law applicable to your region provides.

Statute citation

Governing act Utah Code § 78B-4-501 (Good Samaritan Act).
Scope of protection Protects a person who renders emergency care at or near the scene of, or during, an emergency, gratuitously and in good faith. Not liable for civil damages or penalties unless grossly negligent or the person caused the emergency.
Duty to rescue No
AED liability protection Protected
Statute The general immunity of Utah Code § 78B-4-501 for good faith emergency care extends to use of an AED in an emergency, subject to the gross negligence exception.
No legal duty to rescue AED protection

Your protection under the law

In Utah, the Good Samaritan Act (Utah Code § 78B-4-501) protects anyone who gratuitously and in good faith renders emergency care at or near the scene of an emergency. Neither civil liability nor penalties can attach, except for gross negligence or where the rescuer caused the emergency. That same immunity reaches the use of an automated external defibrillator, subject only to gross fault.

No duty to act, but every reason to

Utah compels no one to rescue: stepping in is a personal choice, not an obligation. But the state has taken care to lift nearly every risk from the person who decides to act, protecting the hands-on effort and the use of an AED in a single stroke. The barrier left to cross, then, is no longer legal — it is one of readiness.

Why training matters

If Utah's law has cleared away the legal risk, it's so that nothing holds you back the day someone collapses in front of you. A stopping heart leaves only minutes, and neither the canyon, nor the ski resort, nor the ambulance's drive will wait for you to learn on the spot. A CPR and first-aid course gives you the right movements and the confidence to perform them without hesitation. Preparing is the most concrete way to refuse helplessness.