News and Announcements

The President has signed the Temporary Bankruptcy Judgeships Extension Act of 2012, as Pub. L. No. 112-121. It extends 29 existing temporary judgeships for an additional five years. The bankruptcy judgeships in the bill were created or extended in 2005 as temporary judgeships.

Associate Justice John Paul Stevens received the Presidential Medal of Freedom this week. The Medal of Freedom is the Nation’s highest civilian honor, presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.

The Third Branch News online is the Judiciary’s new and official source for news.

Weeks before the NATO protests in Chicago, the Court Security Committee for the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse assessed security concerns and plans.

The DC-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has begun accepting electronic filings via the judiciary’s Case Management-Electronic Case Files system, joining every other federal appellate, district, and bankruptcy court in doing so.

Congress has passed legislation saving temporary bankruptcy judgeships that could have expired in 19 judicial districts.

A bill that would realign divisions in the U.S. District Courts in the Eastern District of Missouri and the Northern District of Mississippi has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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.

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.

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.