News and Announcements

During calendar year 2012, 1.1 million bankruptcy petitions were filed by individuals with primarily consumer debt. Filers had a median average monthly income of $2,743, most filed under chapter 7, and for more debtors in 2012 this was not the first time they had filed for bankruptcy.

The luck of the draw produced the first All-Alaskan appellate panel in the Ninth Circuit this month. Senior Circuit Judge Andrew J. Kleinfeld of Fairbanks, Circuit Judge Morgan Christen of Anchorage, and Senior District Judge John W. Sedwick, also of Anchorage, (photo left to right) sat as a panel on October 11th to hear oral arguments at the Richard H. Chambers U.S. Court of Appeals Building in Pasadena, California.

Thirty-one federal court facilities will be downsized or closed in a nationwide program to reduce work space, claiming more than $1.7 million in incentives to release underused offices back to the General Services Administration (GSA).

The Judiciary will remain open for business through October 18, 2013. When no funding mechanism was in place on October 1, 2013, the Judiciary projected that fee income and no-year appropriated funds would enable court operations to continue for ten business days.

The federal courts may be open during the government shutdown, but it’s far from “business as usual.” According to a Department of Justice memo, U.S. Attorneys across the country have been directed to “curtail or postpone” civil litigation.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. has named five new Judicial Conference committee chairs and extended the terms of four current Conference committee chairs. The new appointments became effective October 1, 2013.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada will hold a CLE seminar on its new short trial pilot program on October 9. The pilot promises an expedited trial —both early and short—in civil cases. Short trial rules (pdf) control the length of the trial, including restrictions on discovery, the use of smaller juries, and time limits for presentation of evidence.

Following a government shutdown on October 1, 2013, the federal Judiciary will remain open for business for approximately 10 business days. On or around October 15, 2013, the Judiciary will reassess its situation and provide further guidance.

A federal Judiciary study of early termination of supervision of low-risk offenders shows that the practice not only saves money, it does so without compromising public safety.

Judge Thomas F. Hogan was recently honored by the Judicial Conference of the United States for his distinguished service to the federal judiciary.