Cleveland Law Library Weblog

Changes Coming to Local Deposition Practice under Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Rule 13

The Judges of the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court recently proposed amendments to Local Rule 13 governing deposition practice. Two of the major changes include limitations on the duration of a deposition and the types of objections that can be raised. The proposed amendments also identify the sources of possible sanctions (Ohio Civil Rules 26(C) and 37), which can include attorney fees. Click here to review the proposed changes. The Court Administrator is accepting comments on the changes until September 10, 2012. Send comments to:

Gregory M. Popovich
Court Administrator
Justice Center - 11th Floor
1200 Ontario Street
Cleveland, Ohio 44113 

Ohio Supreme Court launches Court News Ohio, including a Facebook page and a Twitter feed.

The Ohio Supreme Court has gone even more high-tech with yesterday's launch of Court News Ohio, which includes a Facebook page and a Twitter feed. According to the Court's Press Release, Court News Ohio is a "multichannel, multimedia program covering news about the Ohio judicial system for the judiciary, legal community, and the general public."  Court news about programs, rule amendments, and judicial appointments will transition to these new venues. Online news will be found at courtnewsohio.gov, but the court will also publish a print publication called Court News Ohio Review. Court news will also be aired on CNO-TV in the Supreme Court's collection on the Ohio Channel. The Supreme Court's new Facebook page is aptly named Court News Ohio, and its Twitter feed is @courtnewsohio. The Court is posting videos for downloading or through a free podcast subscription on Apple iTunes. A video announcing Court News Ohio has already been posted at the Ohio Channel.

New Changes to Federal Criminal and Bankruptcy Rules Coming 12/1/12

According to a press release from our local federal district court, "the U.S. Supreme Court has approved and transmitted to Congress amendments to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure that will take effect on December 1, 2012 unless Congress takes action to reject, modify or defer them." Changes to the Federal Criminal Rules include:

• Criminal Rule 5 (specifies the place of the initial
  appearance for a defendant extradited to the U.S.)
• Criminal Rule 15 (authorizes the taking of
  depositions outside of the U.S. without the defendant being present in limited
  circumstances)
• Criminal Rule 37 (new rule articulating procedures
  for obtaining an indicative ruling)

Click here for information on these changes and changes to the Bankruptcy Rules.

Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals is Seeking Comments until May 18th on Proposed Amendments to Local Rules 3, 14, 21 and 45

The Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals is seeking comments until May 18th on proposed Amendments to Local Rules 3 (costs), 14 (extensions of time), 21 (oral argument) and 45 (fees for extraordinary writs). According to the Court's press release, comments on the proposed changes can be send to ulv@8thappeals.com until May 18th.

Lawyers Asked to Comment on Proposed Amendments to 6th Circuit Rules and IOPs

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit is proposing "comprehensive amendments" to both the 6th Circuit Rules and IOPs. Interested parties are being asked to email their comments to Leonard Green, Clerk, at ca06-rules_comments@ca6.uscourts.gov no later than July 12, 2012.

Cuyahoga County's Revised Domestic Violence Rule (Local Rule 26) Is Effective Today, 5/1/12

Today, May 1, 2012, is the effective date for Cuyahoga County Domestic Relation's Court's revised Domestic Violence Rule, Local Rule 26. The Court's website also provides access to domestic violence forms, information and FAQ's. All of the Court's Local Rules can be found on the Court's website.

Cuyahoga County Probate Court Posts New Mediation Rules

On September 23, 2011, the Cuyahoga County Probate Court posted changes to its mediation rules that affect Local Rules 11.1, 16.1 and 53.1. The new Rules can be found at this link on the Court's website. As we indicated in a prior post, the Probate Court began offering mediation services earlier this month.

Rules Change Oct. 1st for Practice Before Ohio Supreme Court

A reminder from the Ohio Supreme Court indicates that the following procedural changes will take effect on October 1st for practice before the Court:

• Changes to Rule 1.2 that specify a motion for pro hac vice admission (mandatory for out-of-state attorneys) shall follow the requirements of sections a-e of Gov. Bar R. XII(2)(A)(6), including the required affidavit.
• Changes to Rule 2.2 that establish that the time to appeal to the Supreme Court is tolled (placed on hold) pending the outcome of a sua sponte en banc (consisting of all members of the court) consideration by an appeals court.
• Changes to Rule 8.5 that require copies of jurisdictional memoranda and merit briefs to be single-sided and reduce the number of copies required for jurisdictional memoranda, complaints in original actions and evidence in original actions.
• Changes to Rule 18.3 that requires the Clerk to notify all parties or counsel upon the filing of a certified question of state law.

Click here to find the text of the new rules, which will eventually be posted to the Court's Rules of Court page.

Ohio Supreme Court Issues Standards for Specialized Dockets

The Ohio Supreme Court has just issued standards for specialized dockets in Ohio that will become effective on January 1, 2013, yes 2013. The Court's press release indicates that Ohio already has "nearly 150 specialized dockets ... including drug courts, mental health courts, re-entry courts, OVI courts, veterans courts, sex offender courts, felony non-support courts and domestic violence courts." The new standards, which are contained in new Superintendence Rule 36.02, cover many of the procedural and administrative aspects of setting up and receiving Supreme Court certification of a specialized docket but leave some discretion to the courts creating them. In addition, the new Rule specifically excludes commercial dockets, housing dockets and environmental dockets. The full text of the Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio are available at the Ohio Supreme Court's website but do not yet contain new Rule 36.02.

Cuyahoga County DR Court Seeks Input for New Rules Committee

The Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court has created a new Rules committee to review and update its current local rules. The committee is seeking input from lawyers, litigants and other interested parties. The committee requests that comments be sent to the following email address:   drlocalrules@cuyahogacounty.us