PACER's flaws run counter to original purpose of increasing access to law

ABA Journal: "Like any lawyer, Tina Willis, owner of Tina Willis Law, a personal injury law firm in Orlando, Florida, frequently accesses court records electronically. But as a general rule, she tries to avoid PACER."

Federal courts begin to consider guidelines for reopening

U.S. Courts: "The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts has distributed to the courts guidelines for restoring operations that rely heavily on conditions in local communities and on objective data from local and state public health officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

Virus stimulus to help courts, authorizes some video hearings

Bloomberg Law: "The U.S. Supreme Court will get $500,000 as part of a historic government coronavirus stimulus package that also would authorize judges to allow video or telephone conferencing for certain hearings."

Telephonic oral arguments: tips for advocates

Appellate Blog: "As federal courthouses limit their in-person operations because of COVID-19, telephonic oral arguments will become more common."

The federal courts begin to adapt to COVID-19

Lawfare: "In the United States, the outbreak of the novel coronavirus quickly transformed from a looming risk to a paralyzing pandemic."

Inmate waiting 40 years finally gets appeal hearing. But COVID-19 may shut down court

Charlotte Observer: "More than halfway through an 80-year sentence for a rape he says he didn’t commit, Ronnie Long has received what may be his last best chance for freedom: a hearing before the full Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals."

U.S.: Court may bless refunds for online access to judicial records

Politico: "A lawsuit accusing the federal court system of treating nearly a billion dollars in online access fees like a slush fund got a favorable reception on Monday from an appeals court."

U.S.: Should the public pay a dime for access to court records?

Washington Post: "The federal judiciary charges 10 cents per page to pull up court files from its online record repository. The fees can add up quickly, and users must consider whether each click to view a public record is worth the cost."

Indian Child Welfare Act considered by en banc Fifth Circuit

Courthouse News Service: "A full 16-judge panel at the Fifth Circuit heard arguments Wednesday in a case that challenges a 1978 law that gives preference to Native American families in foster care and adoption proceedings involving children who are identified as belonging to a Native American tribe."

Court to rehear law on adoptions of Native American children

Associated Press: "A federal appeals court announced Thursday that it will take a second look at an emotionally fraught lawsuit governing the adoption of Native American children."

At 92, Fargo native rules as oldest judge on US Court of International Trade

G.F. Herald: "The average person would hope to be long into retirement by age 92, but not Judge Richard Goldberg. The Fargo native who sits on the U.S. Court of International Trade has been going strong in the position for 29 years."

U.S.: PACER court records 'can never be free,' judge says

Bloomberg News: "Making the judiciary’s electronic filings free to the public without an alternative funding source likely would result in steep court fee increases for litigants and hinder access to justice due to cost, a federal judge told a congressional panel Sept. 26."

Job Announcement

Four job announcements for Assistant United States Attorneys with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of North Dakota have been posted.

Lawyer takes fight against state bar dues to 8th Circuit

Courthouse News Service: "An Eighth Circuit panel heard oral arguments [June 13] in an attorney’s challenge over a state bar association’s requirement that attorneys be members of – and also pay dues to – the association in order to practice law."

U.S.: Federal judges have a way to make investigations disappear

Associated Press: "The fastest way for federal judges facing investigation by their peers to make an inquiry go away is to utter two words: 'I quit.'”

Lawsuit over North Dakota water supply project ends after 16 years

Dickinson Press: "The 2002 legal challenge to the Northwest Area Water Supply project has likely come to an end, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said Friday, May 3. In an opinion issued Friday morning, the D.C. Circuit Court ruled in favor of North Dakota and the Bureau of Reclamation."

Senate Judiciary Committee to meet on nominations of Welte, Wrigley

G.F. Herald: "The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee will meet Thursday to discuss the nominations of Grand Forks attorney Peter Welte to serve as U.S. District Judge for North Dakota and former North Dakota Lt. Gov. Drew Wrigley to serve as U.S. Attorney for North Dakota."

Job Announcement

A job announcement for an Assistant Federal Public Defender with the Federal Public Defender office in Bismarck has been posted.