Cleveland Law Library Weblog

PACER Is Adding Transcripts-N.D. of Ohio to Make Them Available

The latest news from PACER is that transcripts will soon be available to the general public that have registered for access. The United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio has issued a Press Release that outlines the process whereby transcripts will be posted after a 90-day waiting period to allow for redactions for personal identifiers, which include social security numbers, financial account numbers, birth dates, names of minor children, and in criminal cases, home addresses. In addition, click here to read about the new software from our local federal court that will allow you to download multiple docket entries into a single pdf file.

Northern District Of Illinois Goes Mobile

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has gone "mobile." In what the U.S. Court's Press release claims is the first access of its kind, the Illinois Court now offers access to its website for lawyers and members of the public using a Blackberry, pda, or other hand-deld device. The software the court runs automatically detects use of one of these devices and routes users to the mobile version of the Court's website, where users can check the Court's daily calendar of find contact information for the Clerk of Court.  The mobile version was designed in connection with a complete re-design of the Court's website, which recently launched in March.

Ohio District Court Warns of Phony Grand Jury Subpoenas

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio recently posted a notice to its website with a warning about phoney email grand jury subpoenas. The Court indicated that these are not official court communications and that recipients should disregard them and not open any of the links, which could be harmful.

U.S. 6th Circuit Implementing Mandatory ECF

The federal Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals will soon be implementing mandatory electronic case filing. According to a Notice the Court recently posted on its home page, the system will operate similar to the ECF systems being used in many federal district courts, with some differences. In addition, filers will have to re-register with PACER for the 6th Circuit even if they are already registered to file in district court. Potential filers are also asked to watch the Sixth Circuit's website for additional, upcoming information.

Ohio Northern District Has New Federal Magistrate

Crain's Cleveland Business reports that the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio has a new Magistrate named Gregory A. White. Most recently having served as the United States Attorney in the Northern District, White is a graduate of Cleveland-Marshall College of Law with a history of 22 years of service as a prosecutor from Lorain County. White's federal prosecutorial job will be filled by William J. Edwards, who previously served as U.S. Attorney in 1988.

Federal Court Management Statistics Available Online

The U.S. Courts Library has posted 2007 Federal Court Management Statistics for all U.S. Courts of Appeal and District Courts. The data is available in chart or spreadsheet format. The appellate data provides overall caseload statistics and more detailed information on appeals filed, appeals terminated, actions per judge, actions per panel, and time frames for dispositions. Data is also available for each circuit individually, and the information for the Sixth Circuit shows that of the 4,818 cases that were filed in 2007, 2,517 involved prisoners or other criminal matters. The general and court-specific district court data itemizes overall caseload statistics, as well as filings per judge, disposition times, and civil and criminal filings by nature of suit and offense. Interestingly, although 5,386 cases were filed in 2007 in the Northern District of Ohio, 6,136 cases were terminated, and 5,772 cases still remained pending at the close of the year. Similar data is also available back to 1997.

2007 U.S. Judicial Conference Proceedings Now Online

The September 18, 2007 Report of the Proceedings of the Judicial Conference of the United States is now available online. This Report provides detailed summaries of the results of elections, committee resolutions and activities, changes in magistrate positions, and federal rule changes. Worth a read for those watching  progress and change in the federal courts.

Northern District Court Requies Affidavit for Foreclosure Actions

In view of the huge number of foreclosures being filed, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio has amended its General Order to require an affidavit to be filed with all foreclosure complaints. See  Sixth Amended General Order 2006-16: Procedures for
Foreclosure Actions Based on Diversity Jurisdiction. The amendment modifies
Section 1.2.5 and requires as follows:
"1.2.5 An affidavit documenting that the named plaintiff is the owner and
holder of the note and mortgage, whether the original mortgagee or by later
assignment, successor in interest or as a trustee for another entity.  The
following is acceptable documentation: (a) if the plaintiff is the original
holder of the note and mortgage, the copies of the note and mortgage (see
Sections 1.2.3 and 1.2.4); or (b) if the plaintiff is not the original holder
of the note and mortgage, a copy of the assignment of the note and mortgage
from the original holder to the plaintiff, executed and effective prior
to the filing of the complaint." This new requirement applies to all pending actions and new actions that are filed.

16 Libraries Provide Free Access to PACER Records

Patrons at 16 libraries across the country now have free access to federal court records from PACER (Public Access to [federal] Court Electronic Records) under a new pilot project jointly created by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts and the Government Printing Office. The Federal Court's Press Release indicates that all of the libraries are federal depository libraries and identifies the State Library of Ohio as one of the sites where PACER allows users to search for free. Although PACER does not charge an access fee, registered users currently pay $.08 per page. That fee will be waived for anyone who gains access to PACER from one of the trial libraries.

PACER Stats: 98% of Federal Courts Now Using CM/ECF

PACER has issued a November 2007 Press Release indicating that 98% of the federal courts are now using Case Management/Electronic Case Filing (CM/ECF). Those stats include 93 district courts, 93 bankruptcy courts, the Court of International Trade, the Court of Federal Claims, the 6th, 8th and 10th circuits, and those 3 courts' Bankruptcy Appellate Panels. Virtually all of the nation's federal courts should be on board PACER by the end of 2007. The Press Release also details the purposes of PACER and the ease it creates in searching case files and uploading documents for filing.