Lawyer news

• Judiciary Says Courthouses Are in Crisis, Seeks Real Property Authority

  24-02-2026 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The condition of federal courthouses around the country is in a deepening state of crisis, compelling the Judiciary to ask Congress for authority to directly manage properties that are essential to carrying out its constitutional mission.
  
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• Bankruptcy Filings Rise 11 Percent

  04-02-2026 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Total bankruptcy filings rose 11 percent, with increases in both business and non-business bankruptcies, in the twelve-month period ending Dec. 31, 2025.
  
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• Judiciary To Remain Open Until Feb. 5

  30-01-2026 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  In the event of a lapse in appropriations at midnight on Jan. 30, the Judiciary will remain open and continue paid operations through Wednesday, Feb. 4, by using court fee balances and other funds not dependent on a new appropriation.
  
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• Chief Justice Roberts Issues 2025 Year-End Report

  31-12-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., has issued his 2025 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary.
  
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• Judiciary Learning Center Bridges Gap Between Science and Law

  18-12-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The new Federal Circuit Center for Innovation and Law offers students an immersive learning experience that connects science, technology, civics, and law in the nation’s capital.
  
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• Funds Available for Additional Chapter 7 Trustee Payments for FY 2024 Cases

  08-12-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The Department of Justice has advised the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts that it has funds available to transfer to the Judiciary to make additional payments to eligible Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustees for fiscal year 2024.
  
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• Judge John D. Bates Receives 2025 Devitt Award

  02-12-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Judge John D. Bates, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, is the 2025 recipient of the Edward J. Devitt Distinguished Service to Justice Award.
  
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• Bankruptcy Filings Increase 10.6 Percent

  24-11-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Personal and business bankruptcy filings increased 10.6 percent in the twelve-month period ending Sept. 30, 2025, compared with the previous year.
  
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• Judiciary Funding Runs Out; Only Limited Operations to Continue

  17-10-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The judicial branch announced that beginning on Monday, Oct. 20, it will no longer have funding to sustain full, paid operations.
  
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• Judiciary Still Operating as Shutdown Starts

  01-10-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Despite a federal government shutdown that began on Oct. 1, the Judiciary remains open and will continue paid operations through Friday, Oct. 17, by using court fee balances and other funds not dependent on a new appropriation.
  
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• Judiciary Budget Crisis Could Worsen, Conference Is Told

  16-09-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The Judiciary’s funding shortfalls could get worse in the coming year, and the effects would be especially severe if federal courts must operate under another full-year continuing resolution, the Judiciary’s policy-making body was told.
  
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• National Initiative Opens Doors to Next Generation of Court Professionals

  11-09-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Federal judges are introducing young people to the Judiciary and sparking their interest in a range of careers in the courts – beyond the roles of judges and lawyers – through a national initiative called Open Doors to Careers in the Courts. A new video shows the approach, which starts with students visiting courthouses to interact with court professionals and experience the job functions that keep the wheels of justice turning.
  
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• Law Students Guide Tomorrow’s Leaders in Novel Civics Initiative

  14-08-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  When U.S. District Judge Richard W. Story observed a nationwide trend showing that a troubling percentage of citizens are unaware of their rights and the role of the Judiciary, he decided to take action to address this civics deficit.
  
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• Cybersecurity Measures Strengthened in Light of Attacks on Judiciary’s Case Management System

  07-08-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The federal Judiciary is taking additional steps to strengthen protections for sensitive case documents in response to recent escalated cyberattacks of a sophisticated and persistent nature on its case management system. The Judiciary is also further enhancing security of the system and to block future attacks, and it is prioritizing working with courts to mitigate the impact on litigants.
  
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• Bankruptcy Filings Rise 11.5 Percent Over Previous Year

  31-07-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Personal and business bankruptcy filings rose 11.5 percent in the twelve-month period ending June 30, 2025, compared with the previous year.
  
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• Funding Crisis Leaves Defense Lawyers Working Without Pay

  15-07-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The program that pays court-appointed private attorneys to represent indigent federal criminal defendants has run out of money, starting the clock on a painful three-month delay in paying these attorneys and their related service providers for constitutionally mandated legal work.
  
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• 2024 Wiretap Report: Intercepts and Convictions Rise

  30-06-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Federal and state courts reported a combined 9 percent increase in authorized wiretaps in 2024, compared with 2023, according to the Judiciary’s 2024 Wiretap Report.
  
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• The Public Costs of Supervision Versus Detention

  05-06-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  For people involved in non-violent criminal cases, supervision not only presents a second chance at a productive life but saves taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars compared to the costs associated with incarceration.
  
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• New Judiciary Learning Center Opens in Boston

  29-05-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The Stephen G. Breyer Community Learning Center on Courts and the Constitution, which officially opened on March 25, offers civics education activities for learners of all ages and backgrounds throughout the First Circuit.
  
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• Judicial Branch Seeks $9.4 Billion in FY 2026 Budget Request

  14-05-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Two federal judges told Congress that the Judiciary has been negatively affected by two straight years of flat funding in most accounts, and they said a 9.3 percent increase in appropriations for the upcoming fiscal year is needed to ensure that the Judiciary can perform its essential constitutional functions.
  
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• Bankruptcies Rise 13.1 Percent Over Previous Year

  01-05-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Bankruptcy filings rose 13.1 percent during the 12-month period ending March 31, 2025. That is a similar rate of acceleration as in the Dec. 31, 2024, quarterly report, but new bankruptcy cases remain significantly lower than after the 2007-08 Great Recession.
  
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• Judges Bring Oral Arguments to Law School Campuses

  24-04-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Law students were asked to set aside their casebooks to witness “justice in action” as Federal Circuit judges and attorneys recently gathered for oral arguments at three North Carolina law schools.
  
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• Funding Shortfalls Adversely Affect Key Judiciary Programs

  18-04-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  A shortfall in this year’s congressional appropriations is significantly impacting the Judiciary’s ability to ensure security at courthouses at a time of rising threats to federal judges and impairing efforts to provide critical legal defense services to people who can’t afford to hire lawyers.
  
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• Students Get Firsthand Look at Court Careers

  10-04-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Instead of learning about the Judiciary through social media or courtroom dramas on TV, students are entering federal courthouses to engage with judges and court professionals on careers in the courts — learning valuable legal and life skills along the way.
  
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• Judiciary Releases Workplace Conduct Report and Employee Survey Results

  31-03-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The federal Judiciary today released the results of its first-ever employee survey exploring workplace issues, along with a new report containing recommendations for improvements aimed at achieving the Judiciary’s goal of fostering “an exemplary workplace.”
  
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• Judiciary Seeks 71 Judgeships to Meet Growing Caseloads

  11-03-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  The Judicial Conference of the United States agreed to recommend to Congress the creation of new district and court of appeals judgeships as the Judiciary faces a worsening shortage of Article III judges and caseloads continue to mount.
  
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• A Century of Service: Probation and Pretrial Services’ Impact on Justice

  04-03-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Arising from humble beginnings to perform a century of service, U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services has played a pivotal role in serving the courts and protecting communities.
  
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• Courts Need More Judgeships, Judge Tells Congress

  25-02-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  With federal courts across the country contending with mounting caseloads, Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich, of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, urged Congress today to create new district and court of appeals judgeships to meet growing workload demands.
  
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• New Tool Helps Public Find Local Court Civics Resources and Programs

  13-02-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Federal courts regularly engage in public outreach and civics education efforts. A new interactive civics map is helping the public more easily find court educational resources and civics program information nationwide.
  
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• Bankruptcy Filings Rise 14.2 Percent

  04-02-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  Total bankruptcy filings rose 14.2 percent, with increases in both business and non-business bankruptcies, in the twelve-month period ending Dec. 31, 2024. . 
  
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• Study Confirms Positive Impact of Early Release Initiative

  30-01-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  When a federal judge imposed two concurrent life sentences on Jerome Brough, he sat frozen in disbelief, struggling to comprehend how a non-violent drug-related offense could lead to a lifetime in prison. Yet, through determination, good fortune, and the Judiciary’s increasing use of early release from supervision, Brough is now a free man.
  
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• Supreme Court upholds law banning TikTok if it’s not sold

  17-01-2025 01:00
  
  The Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld the federal law banning TikTok beginning Sunday unless it’s sold by its China-based parent company, holding that the risk to national security posed by its ties to China overcomes concerns about limiting speech by the app or its 170 million users in the United States.
  
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• Panel upholds $6M verdict in prescription opioid addiction death

  17-01-2025 01:00
  
  A doctor lost a bid to reverse a Cook County jury verdict awarding $6 million to the family of a 41-year-old woman who died as a result of an opioid addiction the family claimed was caused by the doctor.
  
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• Madigan defense rests, closing arguments begin next week

  17-01-2025 01:00
  
  Attorneys for former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan rested their case Thursday, marking the beginning of the end of the longtime Democratic powerbroker’s corruption trial.
  
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• Jury awards record $24M in suit over lead poisoning of children

  17-01-2025 01:00
  
  A Cook County jury returned a $24.1 million verdict Thursday to the family of two children who allegedly developed lead poisoning while living in public housing owned by the Chicago Housing Authority.
  
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• Criminal procedure — probation violation

  17-01-2025 01:00
  
  Where defendant at a remission hearing admits via stipulation that he violated his probation, the state does not have the burden to prove that the violation occurred.
  
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• Cook County judge reassigned from domestic violence cases

  17-01-2025 01:00
  
  Cook County Circuit Judge Thomas E. Nowinski has been transferred from the Domestic Violence Division to the 3rd Municipal District at his own request after facing criticism over how he handled a case that resulted in the death of a woman.
  
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• Director’s Awards Recognize 16 Employees for Leadership, Service

  16-01-2025 12:00 via uscourts.gov
  A total of 16 employees have received the 2024 Director’s Awards, which recognize employees who have exemplified the core values, issues, strategies, and goals of the Judiciary.
  
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• Sentencing — robbery enhancement

  16-01-2025 01:00
  
  Where defendant drove aggressively despite hazardous conditions caused by blizzard while fleeing robbery, district court did not err in applying two level recklessness enhancement.
  
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• Recent court decisions should give lawmakers plenty to do

  16-01-2025 01:00
  
  As the 104th Illinois General Assembly convenes and tangles over a myriad of issues large and small, the representatives and senators should consider addressing recent court decisions that have impaired the intent of legislature.
  
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• Madigan prosecutor examines final defense witness

  16-01-2025 01:00
  
  For the past three months, the judge presiding over former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s federal corruption trial has reminded jurors before each lunch break and evening recess not to discuss the case with anyone, even among themselves.
  
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• Family of pedestrian killed in police chase to receive $4.5M

  16-01-2025 01:00
  
  The city of Chicago will pay $4.5 million to the family of a pedestrian who was killed by a car hit by a different car fleeing from police.
  
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• Chicago to pay $8.75M to man wrongfully convicted of murder

  16-01-2025 01:00
  
  The Chicago City Council approved an $8.75 million settlement for a man who spent nearly 25 years in prison for the rape and murder of a 6-year-old boy — a crime committed by someone else.
  
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• Chicago to pay $4.5M to family of pedestrian killed in police chase

  16-01-2025 01:00
  
  The city of Chicago will pay $4.5 million to the family of a pedestrian who was killed by a carhit by a different car fleeing from police.
  
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• Buchalter opens Chicago office with 15 lawyers from Robbins DiMonte

  16-01-2025 01:00
  
  Business law firm Buchalter has opened a new office in Chicago, staffed with 15 attorneys previously employed by Robbins DiMonte Ltd., the firm announced Wednesday.
  
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• Trump’s pick for attorney general appears at Senate confirmation hearing

  15-01-2025 01:00
  
  Pam Bondi, Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, insisted at her Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday that the president-elect had been targeted by years of investigations and pledged that she would not “politicize” the Justice Department if confirmed as the country’s chief federal law enforcement officer.
  
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• SCOTUS to hear case involving anti-pornography law, free speech

  15-01-2025 01:00
  
  A Texas anti-pornography law is going before the Supreme Court on Wednesday in a collision of free speech rights, regulation of online content and the protection of children.
  
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• SCOTUS hears case involving anti-pornography law, free speech

  15-01-2025 01:00
  
  WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday seemed open to a Texas law aimed at blocking kids from seeing online pornography, though the justices could still send it back to a lower court for more consideration of how the age verification measure affects adults’ free-speech rights.
  
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• Federal judge dismisses claimants’ privacy rights suit against State Farm

  15-01-2025 01:00
  
  People who submitted personal injury claims to State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. after being involved in a car accident do not have a case against the company for allegedly sharing their medical information with an association that analyzes claims-related data, a federal judge held.
  
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• Federal judge dismisses claimants’ privacy rights suit against State Farm

  15-01-2025 01:00
  
  People who submitted personal injury claims to State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. after being involved in a car accident do not have a case against the company for allegedly sharing their medical information with an association that analyzes claims-related data, a federal judge held.
  
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