Tis’ nobler in the mind to suffer, The slings and arrows of legal misfortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them. To object, or not to object—to the magistrate judge? That is the…
Tag: District Court
The Score is 167,504 to 759. So yeah, the State Courts Handle a Few More Cases Than the Federal Court
167,504 to 759. It sounds like a lopsided cricket score (those matches go on forever!), but it’s really the number of proceedings filed in Rhode Island state courts versus the Rhode Island federal court in 2016, the most recent year…
Opening Statements in Federal Civil Rights Jury Trial are Monday, March 12
On Monday, March 12, at 9:30 a.m., the federal jury trial in Shelton v. Wozny, civil action number 14-cv-313, will begin in Courtroom 1. U.S. District Judge McConnell will preside. After some quick preliminaries, it is likely the jury will be…
Law Nerd Legal Nirvana: Federal Jury Selection and R.I. Supreme Court Oral Argument Today!
It’s been a long winter. And then we all lost power from the big storm. But not to worry – there’s nothing to recharge those batteries like watching legal advocacy! Today, you can witness jury selection in the federal courthouse…
Revisiting the Judicial Tenure & Discipline Decision on Judge Ovalles and What It Tells Us About Judging
Every once in a while, a case comes along that turns the sock inside out, like a motion to withdraw a guilty plea where the defendant’s former attorney testifies for the prosecution, or when attorneys sue their former law firms. …
The Ways of Legal Citation for Court Documents in the D.R.I.
The “First Circuit,” “1st Cir.”, “CA1,” “the Circuit,” or “the Court” — these are all ways to refer to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, depending on the type of citation system. The most common guide…
Attention Courthouse Fans: Go Voir a Jury Voir Dire in Federal Court Tomorrow
Law students, members of the public, and interested attorneys: if you can make it to downtown Providence tomorrow morning (January 23, 2018) at 9:30 a.m., and you want to see something that is the rough equivalent of a blue unicorn,…
SCOTUS follows SCOTUS, the Circuit follows the Circuit, but D.J.s don’t follow D.J.s. What gives?
One interesting facet of the federal court system is its hierarchical structure. The thirteen Circuit Courts of Appeals that sit directly below the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) must follow the Supreme Court’s binding precedent. The District Courts…
Feds say POTato, State says PotATO, Let’s Call The Whole Pleading Thing Off
Federal and state courts each have their own separate rules of civil procedure, but it’s a long-standing tenet of Rhode Island law that state and federal rules with similar language are generally interpreted the same. Heal v. Heal, 762 A.2d…
What’s the Deal with the U.S. District Judge and U.S. Attorney Vacancies?
The United States District Court has been down a judge for over two years, and the U.S. Attorney’s office has sat vacant since March 2017. How did we get here and what’s taking so long? Both positions require Presidential nomination…