8th Circuit issues opinions in 2 N.D. cases

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed a summary judgment in an Americans With Disabilities Act case against the UND School of Law and the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel has affirmed the dismissal of an adversary proceeding in a North Dakota bankruptcy.

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."

Job Announcement - Term Law Clerk

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk to a United States District Judge with the U.S. District Court in Fargo has been posted.

U.S. District Court updates order on coronavirus response

The United States District Court has issued an updated coronavirus order closing its courthouses in Bismarck, Fargo, Minot, and Grand Forks to the public effective March 23.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued an opinion in a North Dakota health insurance case involving a claim for air-ambulance benefits.

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. District Court issues order on coronavirus emergency

The United States District Court for the District of North Dakota has issued an administrative order relating to the coronavirus emergency.

U.S. District Court postpones investiture of Judge Welte

The United States District Court for the District of North Dakota announces the postponement of the March 19 investiture ceremony for Chief Judge Peter D. Welte, in Fargo.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of a North Dakota employment retaliation case.

8th Circuit decides N.D. accident cases

In separate appeals involving the same North Dakota incident, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has remanded one case for lack of federal court jurisdiction and the other for new findings and conclusions on the allocation of fault.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam affirmance of the sentence in a North Dakota case.

8th Circuit issues opinion in N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed the district court's denial of a petition for a certificate of innocence in a North Dakota case involving federal gambling and money laundering convictions that were reversed on appeal.

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."

8th Circuit dismisses N.D. appeal

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has dismissed an appeal in a North Dakota drug case.

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."

Judge Traynor takes seat on U.S. District Court bench

On Jan. 13, President Donald J. Trump signed the commission formally appointing Daniel Mack Traynor as United States District Judge for the District of North Dakota. North Dakota Supreme Court Justice Gerald VandeWalle gave the oath of office to Judge Traynor.

Job Announcement - Court Reporter

A job announcement for a Court Reporter with the U.S. District Court in Bismarck has been posted.

Traynor receives commission to North Dakota federal court

Ballotpedia News: "On January 13, 2020, Daniel Mack Traynor received his judicial commission to the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota."

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed a summary judgment in a North Dakota personal injury case involving high voltage power lines.

8th Circuit decides two N.D. cases

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed the judgment in an oil royalties overpayment case and affirmed the district court's decision on a motion to suppress in a sex abuse case.

Senate confirms Traynor as new federal judge in North Dakota

Bismarck Tribune: "The U.S. Senate has confirmed Devils Lake attorney Daniel Traynor to serve as federal judge in North Dakota, according to U.S. Sens. John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer."

Job Announcement - Term Law Clerk

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Nominee Daniel M. Traynor in Bismarck has been posted.

Job Announcement - Term Law Clerk

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk to U.S. Magistrate Judge Alice Senechal in Fargo has been posted.

U.S. District Court to hold naturalization ceremony Dec. 11

The United States District Court for the District of North Dakota will hold a ceremony for the naturalization of new citizens in Fargo on Wednesday, Dec. 11, at 11 a.m.

Federal court historical committee publishes oral history interview of Judge Conmy

The Historical Committee for the United States District of North Dakota, chaired by Magistrate Judge Alice Senechal, announces the publication of an oral history interview of Senior Judge Patrick Conmy.

Peter Welte, North Dakota's newest U.S. district judge, balances new role with farming

G.F. Herald: "Ice-encrusted soybeans fly over the combine hopper and skitter across the frozen ground as Peter Welte readies the combine to harvest his crop."

Welte named Chief Judge for U.S. District of North Dakota

News Release: "United States District Judge Peter D. Welte has assumed the role of Chief Judge for the District of North Dakota effective Nov. 11."

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."

Daniel Traynor nomination to U.S. District Court for North Dakota advances

G.F. Herald: "The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee has voted to advance the nomination of Devils Lake attorney Daniel Traynor to be U.S. District Judge for North Dakota. President Donald Trump nominated Traynor for the position in August after it was vacated by semi-retired Judge Daniel Hovland."

Federal Public Defender offers training

The Federal Public Defender has scheduled training sessions starting in November for new Criminal Justice Act panel attorneys.

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."

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion affirming a sentence requiring a defendant in a North Dakota criminal case to register as a sex offender.

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

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk with the U.S. District Court in Bismarck has been posted.

Hoeven introduces Traynor

WZFG News: "Senator John Hoeven [Sept. 25] introduced Daniel Traynor, who has been nominated to serve as a U.S. District Court Judge for North Dakota, at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to review his nomination."

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk with the U.S. District Court in Fargo has been posted.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case: Sept. 10

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion that an appeal waiver in a North Dakota criminal case was valid.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case: Sept. 6

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion affirming resentencing in a North Dakota criminal case.

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk with the U.S. District Court in Bismarck has been posted.

North Dakota's mandatory bar fees are constitutional, rules federal appeals panel

Law.com: "A federal appellate court on Friday rejected a First Amendment challenge to North Dakota’s mandatory bar association. A three-judge panel of the U.S.Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled that there was no constitutional violation in the bar association’s procedures for collecting members’ dues."

8th Circuit decides N.D. case: Aug. 30

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued an opinion affirming a summary judgment of dismissal in a First Amendment lawsuit against the State Bar Association of North Dakota.

President Trump nominates Devils Lake attorney for ND federal judgeship

Bismarck Tribune: "President Donald Trump has nominated Devils Lake attorney Daniel Traynor to succeed federal Judge Daniel Hovland. Traynor is a shareholder in the Traynor Law Firm in Devils Lake, where he practices insurance defense, personal injury, business litigation and American Indian law."

U.S. District Court to host naturalization ceremony in Fargo

The United States District Court for the District of North Dakota announces that a ceremony for the naturalization of new citizens will be held in Fargo on Wednesday, Aug. 28, at 11 a.m.

8th Circuit issues opinion in N.D. case: Aug. 22

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion affirming a plea and sentence in a North Dakota criminal case.

U.S.: Appeals court hammers Dollar Loan Center in payday lender dispute

Sioux Falls Argus Leader: "South Dakota’s chief banking regulator did not violate a payday lender’s rights when he ordered it to surrender its licenses, a federal appeals court has ruled."

8th Circuit decides N.D. case: Aug. 14

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion in a North Dakota Fair Debt Collection Practices Act case.

U.S. District Court offers pro bono resources

News Release: "Chief Judge Daniel L. Hovland of the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota announced the availability of resources for attorneys to provide services to survivors of domestic violence under the “Pro bono Work to Empower and Represent (POWER) Act” of 2018."

8th Circuit issues opinion in N.D. case: Aug. 8

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued an opinion affirming a district court decision that denied a defendant's request to withdraw his guilty plea in a North Dakota sex abuse case.

New U.S. District Judge Welte takes oath

New United States District Judge Peter Welte took the oath of office from Eighth Circuit Judge Ralph Erickson on Aug. 6.

Appeals court sides with farm equipment makers

Bismarck Tribune: "A federal appeals court has affirmed a decision by a North Dakota judge who blocked a state law meant to protect farm equipment dealers."

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk with the U.S. District Court in Bismarck has been posted.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case: Aug 5

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued an opinion affirming a district court order enjoining tribal courts in North Dakota's Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation from deciding suits over oil and gas leases on allotted trust lands.

8th Circuit issues opinion in N.D. case: Aug. 2

The United States Court of Appeals has issued an opinion affirming a district court order that enjoined North Dakota Senate Bill 2289, which regulates relationships between manufacturers and farm equipment dealers.

Eighth Circuit upholds North Dakota voter ID law

Courthouse News Service: "The Eighth Circuit ruled Wednesday that a North Dakota law requiring voter identification is constitutional; vacating a federal court order that imposed a statewide injunction on the rule after Native American voters argued the ID law caused voter suppression."

8th Circuit issues opinion in N.D. case: Aug. 1

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issue an opinion affirming the conviction in a North Dakota sex trafficking case.

Peter Welte confirmed to federal judgeship

G.F. Herald: "The U.S. Senate confirmed former Grand Forks County State’s Attorney Peter Welte to fill a long-vacant federal judgeship on Tuesday, July 30."

8th Circuit issues opinion in N.D. case: July 31

The United States Court of Appeals has issued an opinion vacating the district court's statewide injunction in a case that challenged North Dakota's voter identification requirements.

Job Announcement

A job announcement for three Law Clerks with the U.S. District Court in Fargo has been posted.

Welte set for confirmation vote

KFYR News: "Former North Dakota State's Attorney Peter Welte is one step closer to becoming a Federal District Court Judge. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell filed a closure on the nomination of Welte to serve the District of North Dakota."

Ruling involving newborn's death from South Dakota mom's drug use could have profound implications

G.F. Herald: "The reversal of a federal court decision to dismiss manslaughter charges against a Sisseton woman could have wide-ranging implications and will likely be back before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit."

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Case Administrator for the U.S. District Court in Fargo has been posted.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has concluded that an appeal in a North Dakota habeas corpus case is moot.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam affirmance in a North Dakota civil rights case.

8th Circuit issues opinions in N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed a summary judgment dismissing a lien in a North Dakota oil field employment dispute and affirmed the district court's denial of attorney fees in the same matter.

U.S.: Court revives manslaughter charge in baby’s drug-related death

Courthouse News Service: "A divided Eighth Circuit panel reinstated an involuntary manslaughter charge Friday against a South Dakota woman whose son died hours after birth and was found to have illegal drugs in his system."

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.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed a summary judgment in a North Dakota insurance reimbursement case.

U.S. District Court to hold naturalization ceremony Wednesday

News Release: "The United States District Court for the District of North Dakota announces that a ceremony for the naturalization of new citizens will be held in Fargo on Wednesday, June 26, 2019, at 11:00 a.m."

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Courtroom Deputy with the U.S. District Court in Fargo has 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."

Sanford Health loses appeal in anti-trust lawsuit

Sioux Falls Argus Leader: "A federal appeals court has sided with a North Dakota judge who blocked a merger between Sanford Health and a private physician group. Sanford had sought to acquire Mid Dakota Clinic, which serves the Bismarck-Mandan area of North Dakota."

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Courtroom Deputy with the United States District Court in Fargo has been posted.

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk to a United States Magistrate Judge in Fargo has been posted.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed the conviction in a North Dakota drug case.

Panel rejects appeal by drug kingpin convicted of murder

Bismarck Tribune: "A federal circuit court has rejected the appeal of a Minnesota man convicted of running a wide-ranging methamphetamine operation and ordering the killing of a man in North Dakota."

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed the conviction in a North Dakota murder and drug trafficking case.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion vacating the district court's denial of a challenge to a sentence enhancement in a North Dakota firearms possession case.

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."

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion affirming the sentence in a North Dakota drug case.

U.S. District Court sets naturalization ceremony for April 23

News Release: "The United States District Court for the District of North Dakota announces that a ceremony for the naturalization of new citizens will be held in Fargo on Tuesday, April 23, 2019, at 11:00 a.m."

8th Circuit issues opinion in N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed a district court decision to allow the prosecution to play video interviews during the trial of a North Dakota sexual abuse case.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has vacated a district court judgment and remanded for further proceedings in a North Dakota illegal ammunition possession case.

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Federal Public Defender for the Districts of North and South Dakota has been posted.

Peter Welte's nomination as federal judge passes Senate Judiciary Committee

G.F. Herald: "The nomination for Peter Welte to become a U.S. District Court Judge for North Dakota was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday. Welte served as Grand Forks County State's Attorney for over a decade."

8th Circuit decides two N.D. cases

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued opinions in two North Dakota cases: it affirmed the convictions in a sex abuse and assault case and dismissed the appeal in a drug case.

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.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a per curiam opinion affirming a summary judgment granted by the district court in a North Dakota civil rights case.

8th Circuit decides N.D. case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in a North Dakota oilfield personal injury case.

Racketeering lawsuit by Dakota Access developer dismissed

U.S. News/AP: "A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a $1 billion racketeering lawsuit that the developer of the Dakota Access oil pipeline filed against environmental groups and activists, saying he found no evidence of a coordinated criminal enterprise."

Job Announcement

A job announcement for a Term Law Clerk with the United States Magistrate Judge in Bismarck has been posted.

Peter Welte takes questions from Senate Judiciary Committee

G.F. Herald: "Former Grand Forks County State's Attorney and federal judgeship nominee Peter Welte testified Wednesday in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Welte, who was nominated for the post last month by President Donald Trump, was introduced to the committee by Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D."

Trump re-nominates Wrigley to serve as U.S. attorney for North Dakota

Grand Forks Herald: "President Donald Trump has renewed his nomination of Drew Wrigley to again serve as the U.S. attorney for North Dakota."

Hochhalter appointed U.S. magistrate judge

News Release: "Chief Judge Daniel L. Hovland of the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota announced the appointment of Mr. Clare R. Hochhalter to the position of United States Magistrate Judge for a term of eight years effective February 8, 2019."