The Court of International Trade on Nov. 14 extended the deadline for interested parties to submit comments on proposed amendments to one of the court's practice rules. Comments that had been due by Nov. 24 now will be accepted through close of business on Dec. 5.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Nov. 13 said it has resumed normal operations "effective immediately" in light of the end of the federal government shutdown. The court said the Clerk's Office public intake counter has returned to normal business hours, and the Circuit Library is open and has resumed all public and support services.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit adopted amendments to seven of its practice rules and three of its practice notes following a comment period (see 2509180010). The changes, which affect Rules 15, 25, 30, 32, 39, 46 and 47, will take effect on Dec. 1.
Pay.gov will undergo maintenance on Nov. 8, and PACER will undergo maintenance on Nov. 9, the Court of International Trade announced. Documents requiring payment through Pay.gov can't be filed on CM/ECF during the hours of 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET, the court said. On Nov. 9, users may experience "intermittent issues when logging on to CM/ECF and when making payments through Pay.gov" from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, due to the maintenance of PACER.
The Court of International Trade will be closed on Nov. 28 and Dec. 26 in addition to the federal holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas, the court announced. Both days, Nov. 28 (the Friday after Thanksgiving) and Dec. 26 (the Friday after Christmas), will be considered a "legal holiday" by the court for purposes of the "computation of time and motions to enlarge time," the court said.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said on Oct. 31 that all scheduled arguments will proceed as scheduled despite the federal government shutdown. The appellate court has a full slate of cases scheduled for argument from Nov. 3 to Nov. 6, including two appeals from the Court of International Trade. The court added that "all filing deadlines remain in effect" and that jointly filed or unopposed motions for extensions of time for "briefs and other deadlines in non-calendared cases" will be generally granted for up to 60 days. The court said electronic case filing will remain available through CM/ECF.
The Court of International Trade approved amendments to two of its rules and various of its forms on Oct. 23, the court announced. The court altered Rules 84 and 87. Rule 87, which previously was titled "Forms," is now titled "Civil Rules Emergency" to reflect changes to the Federal Rules for Civil Procedure.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Oct. 20 announced that the Circuit Library is closed until further notice, and that "all public and support services, including services to members of the bar and unrepresented filers, are suspended" during the course of the federal government shutdown. The announcement comes after the federal court system said it ran out of money to continue full, paid operations on Oct. 20 (see 2510200021).
The Court of International Trade on Oct. 17 said that it will remain open despite the lapse in federal appropriations, adding that it will "continue all excepted activities" under the Anti-Deficiency Act and follow the Guide to Judiciary Policy.
Court of International Trade Chief Judge Mark Barnett on Oct. 16 restricted electronic access to sealed documents in light of a "recent escalation in cyberattacks on the CM/ECF systems of federal courts." While sealed documents will continue to be filed in the CM/ECF system under "existing procedures," non-court users no longer can access or view these documents "by electronic means," the court said.