News and Announcements

In a new video, federal judges and public defense attorneys discuss the significance of the Sixth Amendment right to counsel and the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright (1963).

Federal and state courts reported a combined 7 percent increase in authorized wiretaps in 2022, compared with 2021, according to the Judiciary’s 2022 Wiretap Report. Arrests and convictions in cases involving electronic surveillance decreased.

The federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida will be named in honor of the late Judge Joseph W. Hatchett, a trailblazing jurist who was among the first African Americans appointed to the federal bench in the South. The naming ceremony for the Joseph Woodrow Hatchett U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building will be held on June 30.

While the landscape of court libraries has changed as new information technologies have reduced the need for books, court librarians still play a critical role in providing judges, law clerks and other Judiciary staff with legal resources used to support decision-making. This month, courts are marking the 75th anniversary of the creation of the circuit librarian position, a role that today makes possible a wide variety of services in the digital age.

Judge Mary M. Rowland came out in the 1980s, as the HIV epidemic gave rise to a renewed anti-LGBTQ movement across America. In recognition of LGBTQ Pride Month, a new video profile explores Rowland’s experience coming out, her pursuit of a career in law, and the social change she has seen.

As a Japanese American, Judge Susan Oki Mollway never considered herself disadvantaged while growing up in the multicultural environment of Hawaii. So, she was surprised, when she was nominated to the federal bench in 1998, to learn she was the first Asian woman to serve as an Article III federal judge. In recognition of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, a new video profile explores Mollway’s heritage.

The COVID-19 emergency is no longer affecting the functioning of the federal courts, the Judicial Conference’s Executive Committee has found, setting in motion a 120-day grace period in which federal courts may continue to provide the same remote public audio access to civil and bankruptcy proceedings as they did during the emergency.

Bankruptcy filings rose slightly for the 12-month period ending March 31, 2023, but new bankruptcy cases remain sharply lower than before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Individuals can now pay tickets for minor federal violations more easily, using a redesigned website for the Judiciary’s Central Violations Bureau. The website, officially launching in early May, leverages new technologies and best design practices to improve usability and accessibility across devices, including smart phones.

In celebration of Law Day, federal judges are hosting programs in May and throughout the year to give students real-life experience with civil discourse and solid decision-making skills.