News and Announcements

One year after the Tucson shooting that killed six people and wounded 13, federal judges in Arizona honored the late Chief Judge John M. Roll, who was among victims slain while attending a constituent gathering sponsored by Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

The Judicial Conference of the United States today adopted a national policy that encourages federal courts to limit those instances in which they seal entire civil case files.

The Judicial Conference of the United States today received a report on the potentially dire consequences the federal Judiciary may face if a Fiscal Year 2011 funding measure is not soon adopted.

The Judicial Conference of the United States today approved a pilot project to evaluate the effect of cameras in federal district courtrooms and the public release of digital video recordings of some civil proceedings.

Submitting the smallest funding increase requested in more than 20 years, representatives of the federal Judiciary today asked a House subcommittee to adequately fund the courts in the coming year so they can cope with anticipated increases in case filings.

The Judicial Conference of the United States today voted to make a judge-specific workload report available for the first time over the Internet at no charge and also approved a courtroom sharing policy for magistrate judges in new courthouse and courtroom construction.

The Judicial Conference of the United States today adopted a revised Code of Conduct for United States Judges that will take effect July 1, 2009, the first substantial Code revision since 1992. At its biannual meeting, the Conference also voted to ask Congress to create 63 new federal judgeships — 12 in the courts of appeals (nine permanent and three temporary) and 51 in the district courts (38 permanent and 13 temporary).

In furtherance of its aggressive cost containment efforts, the Judicial Conference of the United States today adopted a policy for senior trial judges to share courtrooms in new construction. In addition, the Conference took steps to develop and implement a courtroom sharing policy for magistrate judges, to study the feasibility of and develop an appropriate policy for sharing courtrooms by non-senior district judges in large courthouses, and to study courtroom use in bankruptcy courts, and if the results warrant, develop a sharing policy for those courtrooms.

The federal courts are well-positioned to address an anticipated increase in immigration-related workload and other challenges facing the Judiciary, thanks to Congressional funding, representatives of the Judicial Conference today told House and Senate appropriations subcommittees. 

The Judicial Conference of the United States today approved the first-ever binding, nationwide set of rules for handling conduct and disability complaints against federal judges, bringing consistency and rigor to the process.