Judiciary News

Congress has passed, and the President is expected to sign into law, legislation saving temporary bankruptcy judgeships that could have expired in 19 judicial districts.

The Constitution’s Sixth Amendment states that in all criminal prosecutions “the accused shall . . .have the assistance of counsel for his defense.” But what does that mean for defendants who are penniless? In federal courts, the answer is the federal defender program.

Bankruptcy filings for the 12-month period ending March 31, 2012, fell 13 percent compared to bankruptcy filings for the 12-months ending March 31, 2011, according to statistics released today by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.

Judge James R. Browning, a member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit for more than 50 years, died at age 93 on May 5. He served as his court’s chief judge for 12 years, and was Clerk of the U.S. Supreme Court before his judicial appointment.

May 1 is Law Day in the United States, a day to reflect on what the rule of law has meant to the development of our nation and the continuing role it plays.

The number of persons not selected or challenged on the first day of their jury service in federal courts declined in 2011, meaning that U.S. district courts did a better job of juror utilization.

After 18 months of negotiation, the Administrative Office and the Department of Justice jointly have developed a set of recommendations aimed at making the production or exchange of ESI discovery between prosecutors and defense counsel more efficient and cost-effective.

Budget Committee chair, Judge Julia S. Gibbons, and AO Director, Judge Thomas F. Hogan asked House appropriators to provide a 3.1 percent funding increase for fiscal year 2013.

Probation and pretrial services offices in 27 districts are using 79 kiosks to gather routine status reports from defendants and offenders. Here are the top 10 districts in kiosk use.

Budget problems are affecting everyone in the federal Judiciary. Several Probation Offices are using videoconferencing and webcam interviews to save money and officers’ time on the road.

Judge Robert Holmes Bell, chairs the Judicial Conference Criminal Law Committee, looking at all aspects of criminal law and supporting the work of the federal courts’ probation and pretrial services officers.

Need to know the minute something happens on a court case? The Judiciary’s PACER system can update you on your computer, or any other electronic device, with automatic case notification.

A two-year effort to gather user input on the design of the Next Generation of CM/ECF has produced a number of suggested improvements.

This month, the Supreme Court’s female justices joined Retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor for a panel discussion in celebration of O'Connor's groundbreaking service. The event was the first time all four women justices have appeared together in public.

Fiscal year 2011 was the busiest ever for the federal judiciary’s Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system, and this fiscal year continues that trend. In the first four months of FY 2012, the PACER Service Center responded to about 60,000 telephone calls and 15,000 emails.