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December 06, 2018 Practice Points

What Is a Sometimes Overlooked Resource on Federal Court Rules?

The Judicial Conference website provides a wealth of useful information for practitioners on Federal Court Procedural Rules.

by Andrew M. Toft

The website of the Judicial Conference of the United States is an excellent free online resource for lawyers practicing in the federal courts. Whether you are seeking support for interpretation of a specific rule or context for the application of a recently enacted rule or rule amendment, the website contains important and useful information for practitioners. Reports of the following committees are found on the Judicial Conference website:

  • Advisory Committee on Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure
  • Advisory Committee on Rules of Civil Procedure
  • Advisory Committee on Rules of Evidence
  • Advisory Committee on Rules of Criminal Procedure
  • Advisory Committee on Rules of Appellate Procedure
  • Reports of the Judicial Conference Committee on the Rules of Practice and Procedure

The reports of the advisory committees are a particularly invaluable resource for understanding amendments to the various federal procedure rules, including amendments to the Appellate Rules, Bankruptcy Rules, Civil Rules and Criminal Rules effective December 1, 2018.  The reports provide background, context and citations to authority on the federal rule subject being addressed.     

The Judicial Conference website also has the following useful materials:

  • Rules Governing Section 2254 and 2255 Cases in the United States District Courts
  • United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review Rules of Procedure
  • Appellate Rules Forms
  • Bankruptcy Forms
  • National Court Forms

The information and reports on the website will give the lawyer who studies them an advantage at the trial and appellate levels.

 

Andrew M. Toft practices in Denver, Colorado.


Copyright © 2018, American Bar Association. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or downloaded or stored in an electronic database or retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar Association. The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of the American Bar Association, the Section of Litigation, this committee, or the employer(s) of the author(s).