The Phillip Burton Federal building in San Francisco during the shelter in place order March, 17, which closed many courts across the Bay Area impacting almost 7 Million residents. Photo: Jason Doiy/ALMNorthern District of California Suspends All Jury Trials Until October
As California COVID-19 cases continue to climb, the court has decided to limit the number of people allowed in a courtroom for criminal proceedings to 10 individuals.
July 23, 2020 at 02:32 PM
3 minute read
The original version of this story was published on The Recorder
The Northern District of California's courts will not be conducting any new jury trials—criminal or civil—until October in light of the uptick in coronavirus cases in the state, according to an order issued Thursday.
The order comes as California reported 12,801 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, bringing the state's total to 413,576 positive cases, according to the California Department of Public Health. Although in-person jury trial dates scheduled prior to October will be postponed or vacated, judges can still offer civil bench trials via videoconference, according to the general order signed by U.S. District Chief Judge Phyllis Hamilton of the Northern District of California.
The district's judges determined that "the public safety will be best served" by limiting the number of people in the courtroom to 10 individuals at a time, in effect nixing jury trials, "due to a recent increase in COVID-19 cases and in light of the current guidance of public health agencies," according to the order.
Parties litigating civil cases will not be making their way into a Northern District of California courtroom until October, with judges either deciding cases on the papers or hosting a phone or video hearing.
Initial appearances for criminal defendants appearing before magistrate judges will also be held remotely, according to the judicial decree. New arrestees will be booked at Santa Rita Jail and appear in court the next day, rather than being presented for booking at the U.S. Marshals Service lockup. The decision follows a May 21 order pushing off criminal jury trials until July and new civil jury trials to October. In that order, Hamilton wrote that she could not give any assurances "as to when civil trials can be resumed, and if so, whether a further suspension due to public health developments will be necessary."
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
'Appropriate Relief'?: Google Offers Remedy Concessions in DOJ Antitrust Fight
4 minute read
'Serious Disruptions'?: Federal Courts Brace for Government Shutdown Threat
3 minute read
'Unlawful Release'?: Judge Grants Preliminary Injunction in NASCAR Antitrust Lawsuit
3 minute read
'Almost Impossible'?: Squire Challenge to Sanctions Spotlights Difficulty of Getting Off Administration's List
4 minute readTrending Stories
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
