COVID-19 has rapidly spread throughout the United States, affecting business, and the court system. Right now, there are more than 163,000 people diagnosed with Coronavirus, making the U.S. the country with the highest reported cases of the virus. New York state has the highest number of reported cases with 67,000 people infected. With every aspect of the legal system coming to a halt, here is everything you need to know about how this virus is affecting the court system across the country.
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court has postponed any oral arguments to April. The court also closed its doors to tourists at the beginning of this month, however, the building will stay open for official business. With all of these closures, deadlines were moved up to file petitions to the court, extensions for other pending motions were also granted.
Federal Circuit Court of Appeals
For this court, all cases on the docket for April 2020 will be done remotely and no in-person hearings will be held. Despite these changes, all deadlines are still in effect, and any filings of paperwork must be done via fax or email. With these major changes, criminal defense attorneys at Banks & Brower say they have taken to remote meetings with clients and over the phone meetings.
In addition to these major changes, jury duty summons will be suspended until April 17. For more information on the changes to cases within the circuit court of appeals can be found here.
State Courts
The majority of U.S. states have made changes to court proceedings at least until April 1st. Most state courts are also recommended halting all civil and criminal proceedings until late-April. Michigan, for example, is doing that, especially cases that include the “vulnerable”, which are people who are over 60 years old. Cities like Kirkland, Washington are also putting jury proceedings and trials, which could affect the outcome of these pending cases. This has forced many law firms to take alternative routes when dealing with their cases. While injury attorneys are offering remote help and see delays in cases, defense lawyers seeking to resolve cases may have to resort to plea bargains and dropped cases, not an ideal situation if people are detained and awaiting trial. Below are all of the changes each state is making in their courts, you can find more information by state here. Note this information is subject to change.
Alabama – Juror duty postponed, jury trials postponed, as well as all in-person court proceedings are suspended through April 16.
Alaska- Any jury trials before May 1st will be postponed, as well as criminal cases, Filing deadlines are extended to May 1 in suspended cases.
Arizona – Criminal trials will begin on or before May 4th. trial deadlines for criminal trials have been postponed until further notice. In Tucson all court proceedings are postponed, any ceremonies (wedding, citizenship) are canceled until further notice.
Arkansas – Jury duty suspended until May 1. Trials have postponed until further notice. Exceptions only include emergencies and other necessary procedures.
California – Trials are postponed until April 16. Bankruptcy court hearings will be conducted on the phone through April 16. Any emergency hearings will be held by telephone. Criminal trials suspended until May 1st.
Colorado- All civil and criminal trials set to start between now and May 1st will be postponed as well as grand jury proceedings. Jury duty calls are also postponed until further notice.
Connecticut- Any proceedings and trials scheduled before April 10th are postponed. The clerk’s office is closed to the public, and any filings can be dropped in a designated box by the courthouse lobby.
Delaware- Courthouse and the federal building is closed until further notice. Civil and criminal jury trials will be postponed if they were scheduled to start before April 30th. Attorneys were asked to let the appropriate court know if they saw any symptoms for the virus.
Florida- Any trials or proceedings scheduled in April have been postponed as well as grand jury sessions. Any people coming into court security offices are being screened. Anyone who has visited Italy, Iran or China recently has been denied entrance. Criminal and civil jury trials have been postponed through April 17.
Georgia- Any filing deadlines will be postponed through April 13. Attorneys will have the same amount of time to file after that date. No jury trials will be held for 60 days, while criminal hearings are canceled through May 16th.
Hawaii- All civil and criminal trials will be postponed until further notice. Civil hearings can be done remotely or taken off the court’s calendar. Nonessential criminal matters will be postponed, however, the court will still hold initial appearances, arraignments, detention hearings, and other time-sensitive matters. Hawaii has a total of 163 infections of coronavirus.
Idaho – All jury trials will be postponed through May 11, as well as grand jury hearings, and other proceedings. Preliminary felony and post-conviction proceedings will be done remotely.
Illinois- All civil case deadlines have been extended by 21 days. Trials and civil case hearings have been canceled and will be re-scheduled on or after April 6. Courthouses will stay open for all other businesses including criminal proceedings. mass public gatherings, however, will be prohibited in courthouses in Chicago, and Rockford.
Indiana – Jury trials have been postponed through May 1. Other civil court proceedings will continue, but they may be done remotely, depending on the judge. Naturalization ceremonies are canceled through May.
Iowa – Civil and criminal jury trials are postponed until further notice. Other proceedings will be re-scheduled after April 20. Attorneys are encouraged to speak to their appropriate court and alert them if anyone has shown signs of the virus.
Kansas – Civil and criminal jury trials are postponed until further notice, for the exception of emergency hearings. Some trials in progress were allowed to continue at the discretion of the presiding judge.
Kentucky – Criminal and civil trials are postponed for at least 30 days, however, grand jury proceedings will continue. Exceptions will only be made for emergency matters.
Louisiana– Civil, criminal, and jury trials are all postponed until further notice. All non-case specific events, for example, neutralization ceremonies, are canceled. Exceptions will only be made in emergency proceedings.
Maine– All jury trials are postponed until further notice, including grand jury proceedings. Clerk’s office will only remain open by appointment. Exceptions will be made for proceedings that include, issue of search warrants, certain criminal matters, emergency relief, and essential admin functions.
Maryland – Exceptions are only made for emergency matters, for example, criminal, civil and bankruptcy proceedings related to public safety.
Massachusetts– Some courthouses remain open in Boston, Worcester, and Springfield but all jury trials will be postponed until further notice. Trial-specific deadlines for civil cases can be delayed at the judge’s discretion. Any state appeals scheduled for oral arguments can be done over the phone.
Michigan – All civil and criminal matters are postponed until further notice. There are case-by-case exceptions if there are nonjury proceedings. Criminal matters done before magistrate judges will continue as usual. State courts are limiting courtroom access to no more than 10 people.
Minnesota – Grand jury and criminal proceedings are postponed until further notice. Clerk offices are also closed to the public until further notice. State court proceedings have also received extensions.
Mississippi – Most Proceedings will be conducted remotely if possible. Any misdemeanor hearing dates will be postponed until June and July. Public access is being limited, and March cases will be disposed at the discretion of the judge.
Missouri– Criminal and civil jury trials have been postponed until further notice. Any non-essential proceedings will also be postponed including naturalization. State court system proceedings are postponed through April 17.
Montana – Any trials scheduled for May 1st will be postponed and re-scheduled by each presiding judge. Grand jury proceedings are also postponed, but judges can hold proceedings remotely or in-person at their discretion.
Nebraska – All jury trials have been postponed until further notice.
Nevada – All trials and associated deadlines are postponed through April 10th. Bankruptcy court hearings will be conducted remotely.
New Hampshire – All civil and criminal jury trials scheduled to begin before May 1 have been postponed. Civil hearings and conferences scheduled will be conducted remotely. Exceptions include certain emergency and essential proceedings.
New Jersey – All civil and criminal jury selections and trials scheduled to begin before April 30 are postponed until further notice. Judges are allowed to hold proceedings at their discretion. Nonjury proceedings like landlord-tenant and small claims hearings will be wavered to prevent large groups of people from gathering in a small room.
New Mexico – All civil and criminal jury trials set to begin on or before April 10 until further notice. Deadlines in criminal cases scheduled to begin before April 10 are also postponed. In-state courtrooms no more than 15 people can be in each courtroom, including staff. Judges can conduct civil and criminal proceedings remotely except when an emergency requires an in-person meeting.
New York- All civil and criminal jury trials that were scheduled to begin before April 27. All bankruptcy hearings and conferences can be done by phone unless the presiding judge decides otherwise. The district is allowing video or phone conferencing for some proceedings, including detention hearings, initial appearances, and arraignments.
North Carolina – All civil and criminal jury trials set to begin on or before May 1 are postponed until further notice. All criminal and civil cases are postponed through April 16. Superior Court matters are postponed unless they are essential for constitutional or public safety reasons.
North Dakota – All jury trials scheduled before April 10th are postponed, including trial-specific deadlines. Grand jury proceedings scheduled through April 21 are also postponed. State courts are holding nonjury proceedings for the time being.
Ohio – Some in-court proceedings will continue but on a limited basis. Proceedings that don’t require in-person meetings will continue at the discretion of each judge. Neutralization ceremonies are postponed until April 13th. Criminal trials will not proceed unless absolutely necessary as well as grand jury trials.
Oklahoma– All civil and criminal matters including deadlines are postponed until further notice, as are their related deadline. In any civil, criminal and juvenile cases, deadlines are also suspended for 30 days.
Oregon– Civil and criminal jury selections are postponed until further notice. Potential jurors who are in high-risk categories for severe illness can contact the court to reschedule their jury service if summoned for the state court system.
Pennsylvania– All civil and criminal jury trials and grand jury selections are postponed until April 13.
Rhode Island– All grand jury proceedings and ongoing criminal hearings are postponed unless the person’s liberty interests are involved. Anyone summoned to appear as a juror must call the court before appearing if they are experiencing flu-like symptoms. All other matters in the state courts are postponed until after April 17 except for emergency and essential matters.
South Carolina– All civil and criminal jury selections and trials are postponed until further notice. All other civil and criminal matters scheduled for an in-court appearance before May 8 and their deadlines are postponed unless it can be done remotely. In the state court system, hearings that can be held by video may be held remotely.
South Dakota– All civil and criminal jury trials scheduled to begin on or before April 24 are postponed until further notice. Nonjury matters will continue as scheduled unless otherwise ordered by the presiding judge, all encouraged to participate remotely where possible.
Tennessee– Civil and criminal jury trials are postponed until further notice. Cases not scheduled for a trial will continue as scheduled, but oral proceedings will be done remotely where possible. Deadlines — including statutes of limitations, orders of protection and temporary injunctions — that are set to expire between March 13 and May 5 are extended through May 6.
Texas– All civil and criminal bench and jury trials are postponed until further notice. Public tours and naturalization ceremonies are canceled and will be rescheduled later. Dallas County has canceled all jury trials through May 8.
Utah- All civil and criminal jury trials are postponed until further notice. Judges can postpone trial-related deadlines in civil cases at their discretion. Hearings in criminal cases are postponed, but the assigned judge in each case may proceed with the hearings remotely.
Vermont – All civil and criminal matters that need in-person court appearances are postponed until further notice. All grand jury proceedings are postponed until April 23. The courts will only schedule and hear certain emergency matters.
Virginia- All civil and criminal proceedings are postponed and will be rescheduled for a later date. Deadlines have been extended by two weeks, this does not apply to the statute of limitations.
Washington- All civil and criminal hearings and trial dates are postponed until further notice. Judges may decide to proceed with remote conferences as appropriate. The bankruptcy court will continue with scheduled hearings by telephone as posted on www.wawb.uscourts.gov.
West Virginia – All civil and criminal jury trials and grand jury proceedings are postponed until further notice. Proceedings previously scheduled between March 23 and April 10 are postponed and will be rescheduled by the presiding judge. Emergency proceedings should be conducted remotely when possible
Wisconsin- Al civil and criminal jury trials scheduled to begin before May 1 are postponed and will be rescheduled. All in-person proceedings in appellate and Circuit courts, with certain exceptions, are suspended through April 30.
Wyoming – Judges are conducting matters remotely where possible. In the state court system, all District and Circuit courts have suspended in-person proceedings, with certain exceptions.