Public Comment Period and Revamped Website Open

The public comment period has opened for several proposed amendments to the Federal Rules of Practice and Procedure, which govern litigation in the federal courts. The comment period closes February 15, 2013.

This year, when members of the bench, bar and public submit their comments on changes to the appellate, bankruptcy, civil, criminal, and evidence rules, they’ll notice a revamped website for the Federal Rules.

“Our goal in the reorganization was a simpler, more logical starting point for the bench, practicing bar, and public to access the federal rules and forms. We have attempted to describe the rulemaking process in plain language while providing straightforward access to the rules, the work of the Judicial Conference’s Rules Committees, and other historical and archival material,” said Benjamin Robinson, of the Judicial Conference Rules Committee Support Office.

To make information easier to find, the Rules section is divided into general categories: effective, pending, and proposed rules published for public comment; about the rulemaking process, and records and archives of the Rules Committees.

“By making the site easier to use and information more accessible,” said Robinson, “we hope to make the rulemaking process even more transparent and collaborative.”