Announcements Archive

May 1, 2012 - Amendments to the Local Rules of the Second Circuit - The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has adopted amendments to its Local Rules, effective May 1, 2012, by adding Local Rule 32.2, which sets forth disclosure requirements for a pro se party submitting a brief, appendix, or other paper drafted by an attorney, and Local Rule 46.3, which sets forth procedures applicable to an appeal from a district court attorney disciplinary order. Click here for the order adopting the amendments.

April 11, 2012 - Please be reminded that Local Rule 34.1 requires each party to file an Oral Argument Statement Form within 14 days of the filing of the last appellee's brief in all cases other than those placed on the Non-Argument Calendar. A party's failure to file the statement in a timely manner signifies that the party does not seek argument. Counsel are reminded that the Court does not favor a motion for permission to argue a case when counsel has defaulted on filing the statement.

April 11, 2012 - PACER NOTICE. Please be advised that PACER service is now restored for cases filed prior to 2010 in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

March 12, 2012 - Notice of Proposed Rulemaking - The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has published for comment two amendments to the Local Rules, adding Local Rule 32.2 and Local Rule 46.3. Click here to view the notice and the proposed new rules.

Local Rule 32.2 sets forth disclosure requirements for a pro se party submitting a brief, appendix, or other paper drafted by an attorney. Local Rule 46.3 sets forth procedures applicable to an appeal from a district court attorney disciplinary order.

In accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 2071(b) and Fed. R. App. P. 47(a)(1), comments are invited on this rule. Please submit comments to the Clerk of Court at rulescomments@ca2.uscourts.gov or 40 Foley Square, New York, NY 10007, no later than April 11, 2012.

February 15, 2012 - CM/ECF unavailable Thursday evening, February 16, 2012 - CM/ECF will be unavailable on Thursday, February 16, 2012, from 5:00 p.m. to approximately 7:00 p.m. for a security upgrade on the CM/ECF server. Please arrange all filings accordingly and log out of the system prior to 5:00 p.m.

January 30, 2012 - CM/ECF unavailable Wednesday evening, February 1, 2012 - CM/ECF will be unavailable on Wednesday, February 1, 2012, from 5:00 p.m. to approximately 7:00 p.m. for a server operating systems upgrade. Please arrange all filings accordingly and log out of the server prior to 5:00 p.m.

January 18, 2012 - Pay.gov outages - On Saturday, January 21, 2012, Pay.gov will experience an outage from 6:00 p.m. until approximately 8:00 p.m. due to a failover to its contingency site in East Rutherford, NJ. On February 4, 2012, Pay.gov will experience another outage from 6:00 p.m. until approximately 8:00 p.m. to return to its current production site in Dallas, TX. Please arrange submission of any materials involving electronic payment of fees accordingly during these times.

December 7, 2011 - Amendments to the Local Rules of the Second Circuit - The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has adopted amendments to its Local Rules, effective January 3, 2012. Click here for the order adopting the amendments which primarily set forth requirements associated with the Court’s acceptance of electronic payment from counsel for certain fees prescribed under 28 U.S.C. § 1913.

December 7, 2011 - Adoption of Pay.gov effective January 3, 2012 - On January 3, 2012, the Court will commence using Pay.gov to accept electronic payment from counsel for various fees prescribed under 28 U.S.C. § 1913. Effective January 3, 2012, all counsel applying for admission to the Court and all counsel seeking to renew admission must submit application materials electronically through CM/ECF and remit the appropriate application fee electronically when submitting the materials. The new attorney admission application, effective January 3, 2012, is here. The new admission renewal application, also effective January 3, 2012, is here. Counsel exempt from paying the fee can indicate exemption status. An attorney seeking admission must first register with PACER to become an electronic filing user in the Second Circuit. Absent a written demonstration of undue hardship or exceptional circumstances, the Court will not accept paper copies of applications and payment by cash, check, or money order.

Any counsel who chooses can remit the $450.00 filing fee for a petition for review or writ petition electronically. If counsel remits the filing fee electronically, counsel must submit the petition electronically through CM/ECF. Any counsel who is not yet admitted to the Court must first register with PACER to become an electronic filing user and then immediately seek admission upon submitting the petition and paying the required fee. The Court will continue to accept cash, check, and money orders for the $450.00 filing fee. Counsel who remit the fee in any of these other manners must continue to submit the petition for review or writ petition electronically to newcases@ca2.uscourts.gov.

The Court will also accept electronic payment of fees associated with various requests, including record searches, CDs of oral argument, and certificates of good standing. Any counsel paying these fees electronically must be registered as an electronic filing user. Counsel who wish to remit the fee electronically can submit a request electronically through CM/ECF when paying the fee. The Court will continue to accept cash, check, and money orders for such requests.

November 30, 2011 - CM/ECF unavailable Sunday, December 4, 2011. CM/ECF will be unavailable on Sunday, December 4, 2011, from 8:30 p.m. to approximately 5:00 p.m. for a version upgrade. Please arrange all filings accordingly.

November 18, 2011 - CM/ECF unavailable Monday evening, November 21, 2011. CM/ECF will be unavailable on Monday, November 21, 2011, from 5:00 p.m. to approximately 8:00 p.m. for a database upgrade. Please arrange all filings accordingly and log out of the server prior to 5:00 p.m.

November 15, 2011 - CM/ECF unavailable Thursday evening, November 17, 2011. CM/ECF will be unavailable on Thursday, November 17, 2011, from 5:00 p.m. to approximately 7:00 p.m. for a database upgrade. Please arrange all filings accordingly and log out of the server prior to the scheduled upgrade time.

October 25, 2011 - Notice of fee changes - Effective November 1, 2011, the miscellaneous fees charged pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1913 will increase. The fee changes will impact the cost of filing an application for attorney admission with the Court, as well as making various requests for records, oral argument CDs, and other Court materials. The fee for filing an appeal or petition remains unchanged. Click here to view the updated fee schedule.

October 21, 2011 - CM/ECF unavailable Tuesday evening, October 25, 2011 - CM/ECF will be unavailable on Tuesday, October 25, 2011, from 5:00 p.m. to approximately 8:00 p.m due to a scheduled server upgrade. Please plan all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 5:00 p.m.

October 6, 2011 - Added Reference Materials for Electronic Filing Users - The Court has developed additional reference materials to assist filing users in choosing the appropriate filing events in CM/ECF and selecting the proper email addresses to file documents electronically outside CM/ECF when required. Click here to view a glossary of CM/ECF filing events. The glossary includes a list of all filing events by filing category as they appear in CM/ECF. The glossary also provides common filing tasks and the appropriate CM/ECF events to choose for those tasks. Click here to view a guide to filing documents electronically by email when the electronic filing is performed outside CM/ECF. Click here to view a brief guide for avoiding the most common CM/ECF filing errors.

September 27, 2011 - CM/ECF server upgrade Thursday, September 29, 2011. CM/ECF will be unavailable on Thursday, September 29, 2011, from 5:00 p.m. to approximately 8:00 p.m. due to a planned firmware upgrade. Please plan all filings accordingly and log out of the server prior to the scheduled upgrade time.

September 23, 2011 - Amendment to Local Rules of the Second Circuit. Please be advised that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has adopted Interim Local Rule 3.1, effective October 15, 2011. To view the rule, click here. Local Rule 3.1 permits a district court to effect service of the notice of appeal electronically on any counseled party when the notice of appeal is filed electronically.

In accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 2071(b) and Fed. R. App. P. 47(a)(1), comments are invited on this rule. Please submit comments to the Clerk of Court at 40 Foley Square, New York, NY 10007 or rulescomments@ca2.uscourts.gov by no later than October 24, 2011.

Sept. 6, 2011 - CM/ECF unavailable this evening. CM/ECF will be unavailable this evening from 5:00 p.m. to approximately 7:00 p.m due to a scheduled server upgrade. Please plan all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 5:00 p.m.

March 18, 2011 - Denial of Requests to Extend Briefing. A party must file its principal brief by the date ordered pursuant to Local Rule 31.2. Because the Court's docket is current and the Court places cases on the calendar immediately after briefing concludes, the Court discourages and will deny requests to extend briefing time absent serious personal illness or death in counsel's immediate family as stated in Local Rule 27.1(f).

June 20, 2011 - CM/ECF server upgrade Saturday, June 25, 2011. The CM/ECF server will be unavailable this Saturday, June 25, 2011 from 9:00am to approximately 5:00pm. Please schedule all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 9:00am.

May 11, 2011 - CM/ECF server maintenance today, May 11, 20111. CM/ECF will be unavailable this evening from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. for server maintenance. Please plan your filings accordingly.

April 19, 2011 - PACER server maintenance Friday, April 22, 2011. Due to its scheduled migration to a new service provider, PACER will be unavailable this Friday, April 22, 2011, from 6:00pm to 7:00pm. Please log out of PACER before 6:00pm.

April 8, 2011 - Notice: Court operations in the event of a federal government shutdown.

In the event that an appropriation or continuing resolution funding the operations of the federal government, including the United States Courts by midnight April 8, 2011, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will continue to resolve cases and controversies as mandated by the Constitution. Specifically, the Court will docket new cases, receive documents for filing, determine motions, hear cases on submission and by argument, and decide cases for the duration of the appropriations lapse.

Cases scheduled to be heard the week of April 11, 2011 will go forward as the panel directs in each case. Cases scheduled to be heard during the following weeks will go forward as the panels hearing those cases may direct.

Chief Judge Dennis Jacobs has issued an order directing that in certain cases in which a party is represented by a lawyer employed by the federal government, the filing requirements specified in the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure and this Court’s Local Rules will be tolled for the duration of the lapse. The time to file will resume two business days after the President signs into law a budget appropriation. For example, if there is a lapse at midnight on April 8, 2011 and at that time ten days have run on the party’s time to file, and if a budget is enacted on Saturday, April 16, 2011, the time to file will resume running at 12:01 a.m. on April 20, 2011 as the eleventh day in the filing period. Click here for Chief Judge Jacobs’ order.

In cases subject to the order, the obligation of other parties to comply with the filing requirements of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure and this Court’s Local Rules remain in effect. Pursuant to the order, the Court retains discretion to issue specific directions as may be necessary in particular cases.

January 14, 2011 - Roll of attorneys admitted to practice in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The Court has transferred its roll of admitted attorneys to the CM/ECF database and has posted the roll to the website. The roll consists of attorneys who originally were admitted:

* before April 1, 2004 and renewed admission pursuant to LR 46.1(a);

* after April 1, 2004 regardless of whether an attorney renewed admission.

For informational purposes the Court will continue to post on the website the roll listing attorneys admitted between January 1, 1985 and December 31, 2010. This "Archived Roll of Admitted Attorneys" will assist, in particular, an attorney who wishes to track a pre-April 1, 2004 admission date but has not yet renewed admission. If an attorney admitted between April 1, 2004, and December 31, 2010, does not see his/her name in the CM/ECF database but does see his/her name on the Archived Roll, please contact Admissions at 212-857-8640.

Pursuant to LR 46.1(a), an attorney who was admitted prior to January 14, 2006, and has not renewed admission is now considered in inactive status. After 12 months in inactive status, an attorney will be removed from the admission roll. That attorney must then reapply for admission in accordance with the rule to file a notice of appearance in connection with a case before the Court. The Court will begin to record inactive attorneys as removed from the Archived Roll on July 1, 2011.

December 20, 2010 - Amendment to Local Rule 29.1. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has amended Local Rule 29.1 effective immediately. The amendment eliminates redundancy resulting from December 1, 2010 amendments to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 29 which now mandates amicus curiae to submit a disclosure statement. The requirement in Local Rule 29.1 for amicus curiae to place the disclosure statement in the first footnote on the first page of the brief remains unchanged.

December 9, 2010 - Working with PDFs. To assist counsel in complying with the Local Rules of this Court, the following types of instructions for working with PDFs are now available on the Court's website:

December 8, 2010 - CM/ECF server maintenance Wednesday, December 8, 2010. Please be advised that the CM/ECF server will be unavailable to filers and staff on Wednesday, December 8 from 5:00pm to approximately 8:00pm. Please schedule all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 5:00pm.

November 30, 2010 - Amendments to Local Rules of the Second Circuit. The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has adopted amendments to its Local Rules, effective December 15, 2010. Click here for a clean version of the amendments. Click here for a blacklined version.

The amendments include the creation of a new Expedited Appeals Calendar and reduction in the amount of time for parties to file their main briefs. Click here for the bar notice that addresses the establishment of the Expedited Appeals Calendar. Click here for the bar notice that addresses the application of the reduced filing time for briefs.

November 30, 2010 - Reduced time to file briefs - Effective December 15, 2010, appellant’s main brief will be due no later than 91 days after the "ready date" as that term is defined in FRAP 15 and LR 31.2 (a)(1)(A). Appellee’s brief will be due no later than 91 days after the filing of the last appellant’s brief. The new filing deadline applies to new cases and cases pending as of December 15, 2010. The deadline does not apply to cases placed on the Court’s Expedited Appeals Calendar under revised LR 31.2(b). This notice addresses the application of the rule to cases currently pending before the Court.

Appeals commenced before December 15, 2010 in which no scheduling notification has been filed. An appellant who files a scheduling notification prior to December 15, 2010 may request a brief filing date pursuant to the prior 120-day rule. An appellant who files a scheduling notification on December 15, 2010 or thereafter must request a brief filing date pursuant to the new 91-day rule, unless the record is voluminous or the deadline poses an extreme hardship pursuant to LR 31.2(a)(1)(D).

Appeals commenced before December 15, 2010 in which Appellant filed its main brief pursuant to the prior 120-day rule. An appellee who files a scheduling notification prior to December 15, 2010 may request a brief filing date pursuant to the 120-day rule. An appellee who files a scheduling notification on December 15, 2010 or thereafter must request a brief filing date pursuant to the new 91-day rule, unless the record is voluminous or the deadline poses an extreme hardship pursuant to LR 31.2(a)(1)(D).

Click here for a PDF version of this notice.

November 30, 2010 - Expedited appeals calendar. Effective December 15, 2010, pursuant to amended LR 31.2(b), the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will establish an Expedited Appeals Calendar ("XAC") to facilitate the prompt determination of appeals from district court orders that dismiss a complaint for (a) lack of subject matter jurisdiction under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1); (b) failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6); or (c) filing a frivolous complaint, or for any other ground specified in 28 U.S.C. §1915(e)(2).

If the order appealed from cites at least one of these grounds for dismissal, the parties must so identify the case by checking the appropriate box on revised Form C. The Clerk notifies the parties when an appeal is placed on the XAC and sets the briefing schedule for all parties as follows: 35 days from the date of the Clerk’s notification for the appellant’s brief, 35 days from the date after the filing of the last appellant’s brief for the appellee, and 14 days from the filing of the last appellee’s brief for the reply. A request to extend the briefing time is disfavored and will be governed by LR 27.1, which has not been amended.

Click here a PDF version of this notice.

November 30, 2010 - CM/ECF server maintenance Thursday, December 2, 2010. Please be advised that the CM/ECF server will be unavailable to filers and staff on Thursday, December 2, from 5:00pm to approximately 7:00pm. Please schedule all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 5:00pm.

September 27, 2010 - Notice of proposed rulemaking. Please be advised that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is proposing new and revised local rules to govern its practice.

Click on the appropriate link below to view a clean version of the proposed rules and a blacklined version of the proposed rules.

Proposed rules (clean version)

Proposed rules (blacklined version)

The proposed rules provide generally applicable direction regarding practice before the Court. See Fed. R. App. P. 47(a)(1).

In accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 2071(b) and Fed. R. App. P. 47(a)(1), comments are invited on the proposed rules. Please submit comments to the Clerk of Court at 40 Foley Square, New York, NY 10007 or rulescomments@ca2.uscourts.gov by no later than October 27, 2010.
August 23, 2010 - CM/ECF server maintenance Tuesday, August 24. Please be advised that the CM/ECF server will be unavailable to filers and staff on Tuesday, August 24, from 5:00pm to approximately 8:00pm. Please schedule all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 5:00pm.

August 3, 2010 - CM/ECF server maintenance Friday, August 6. Please be advised that the CM/ECF server will be unavailable to filers and staff on Friday, August 6, from 5:00pm to approximately 8:00pm. Please schedule all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 5:00pm.

July 16, 2010 - CM/ECF server maintenance Tuesday, July 20, 2010. Please be advised that the CM/ECF server will be unavailable to filers and staff on Tuesday, July 20, from 5:00pm to approximately 8:00pm. Please schedule all filings accordingly and log out of the server before 5:00pm.

May 13, 2010 - At the direction of Chief Judge Dennis Jacobs, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will hear oral argument on May 19 and 20, 2010 at the United States Courthouse for the Northern District of New York, James T. Foley U.S. Courthouse, 445 Broadway, Albany, NY 12207.

April 14, 2010 - Please be advised that the CM/ECF server will be unavailable to filers and staff on Monday, April 19, from 5:00pm to approximately 6:00pm. Please schedule your filings accordingly, and be sure to log out of the server before 5:00pm.

April 1, 2010 - CM/ECF will be unavailable to filers on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 from 3:00pm to 9:00pm while the server is undergoing maintenance. Please schedule filings with the Court accordingly, and be sure to log off the system before 3:00.

March 1, 2010 - Please be advised that CM/ECF will be unavailable to attorney-filers this Thursday, March 4, from 5:00pm to approximately 8:00pm. Please plan your filings with the Second Circuit accordingly.

January 29, 2010 - An attorney who registered with PACER should receive within 72 hours an e-mail confirmation of registration. If confirmation is not received, please notify the Court's CM/ECF Help Desk by phone at 212-857-8630 or by e-mail at ecfhelpdesk@ca2.uscourts.gov for further assistance. If sending an e-mail inquiry, please use Attorney Registration in the subject line.

January 20, 2010 - Effective January 20, 2010, electronic filing in all counseled 2010 cases is mandatory in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. All documents filed in a case after the opening document - i.e., the notice of appeal, petition for review, petition for writ of mandamus, successive habeas petition, or motion for leave to file an appeal - must be filed electronically in the Second Circuit. See Local Rule 25.1. Specific instructions for filing an opening document, such as a petition for review or petition for a writ of mandamus, are set forth in Local Rule 25.1(c)(2). Attorneys must be registered both with the Court and PACER to file documents electronically. For more information about registration, click here. For PACER information click here.

To be registered as an electronic filer with the Court, an attorney must be admitted to the Court, and the admission must be in active status. Attorneys whose anniversary date of admission was more than five years ago must renew admission in accordance with Local Rule 46.1(a)(2). If an attorney has a pending admission or renewal application, the Court will accept registration as an electronic filer. Click here for admission and renewal information.

January 10, 2010 - The Criminal Justice Act Committee is accepting applications for service on the Court’s Criminal Justice Act Panel. The final date for filing of applications is Monday, APRIL 5, 2010. Please refer to the Court's official announcement and Application for Appointment/Reappointment to CJA Panel.

December 17, 2009 - The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has revised the Court’s Local Rules, effective January 1, 2010. This newly designed Clerk’s Office web page is for the Local Rules, and revised forms and case filing instructions. Click here for the bar notice that addresses the application of the new rules to cases filed prior to December 31, 2009.

  Quick Links

Admitted Attorneys
Appellate Filer Registration
Directory
E-filing Events Glossary
File a Document (PC) (Mac)
Find a Case
   (through 12/31/2009)
Find a Case
   (01/01/2010 forward)
Forms & Instructions
Notices
PACER
Rules
Working with PDFs