CLERK’S OFFICE UPDATE2019 APPELLATE ADVOCACY SEMINAR
BAR ASSOCIATION OF THE FIFTH FEDERAL CIRCUIT
Lyle CayceClerk of Court
October 7, 20191
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• Circuit Overview
• CM/ECF Filing Initiatives
• Practice Notes and References
• Statistical Review
• Questions
AGENDA
CIRCUIT OVERVIEW
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Louisiana Districts:Eastern District, New Orleans
Chief Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown - Clerk Bill BlevinsMiddle District, Baton Rouge
Chief Judge Shelly D. Dick - Clerk Mike McConnellWestern District, Shreveport
Chief Judge S. Maurice Hicks, Jr. - Clerk Tony Moore
Mississippi Districts:Northern District, Oxford
Chief Judge Sharion Aycock - Clerk David CrewsSouthern District, Jackson
Chief Judge Daniel P. Jordan, III - Clerk Arthur Johnston
Texas Districts:Eastern District, Beaumont
Chief Judge Rodney Gilstrap - Clerk David O’TooleNorthern District, Dallas
Chief Judge Barbara Lynn - Clerk Karen MitchellSouthern District, Houston
Chief Judge Lee Rosenthal - Clerk David BradleyWestern District, San Antonio
Chief Judge Orlando Garcia - Clerk Jeannette Clack
FIFTH CIRCUIT’S NINE DISTRICT COURTS
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17 Authorized judges (16 Active and 9 Senior* Judges):• Houston: Judges Reavley*, King*, Jones, Smith, Elrod, and Costa• Austin: Judges Benavides*, Owen, Willett, and Oldham• Dallas: Judges Haynes and Ho• San Antonio: Judge Higginbotham*• Jackson: Judges Jolly*, Barksdale*, Southwick, and Graves• Shreveport: Chief Judge Stewart• New Orleans: Judges Davis*, Wiener*, Dennis, Clement*, Higginson and
Engelhardt• Baton Rouge: Judge Duncan
1 Vacancy:• Mississippi (Judge Ozerden Nominated)
FIFTH CIRCUIT JUDGES
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CM/ECF FILING INITIATIVES
• Attorney Pending Deadlines/Filings
• Utilities Bar Functions:– Bar Renewals– Electronic Record on Appeal (EROA)– Brief Templates– Quality Control of Briefs
• Automatic Compliance Review at Docketing6
NEW FEATURE SHOW PENDING DEADLINES
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PENDING DEADLINES/FILINGS
UTILITIES BAR FUNCTIONS
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BAR RENEWAL
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RENEWAL NOTICE
ELECTRONIC RECORD
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ELECTRONIC RECORD VOLUMES
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CREATE PORTFOLIO
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BRIEF TEMPLATES
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BRIEF TEMPLATES
CHECK PDF DOCUMENT
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COMPLIANCE REVIEW
Automated Scan Process• Submit electronically filed documents to
an automated quality control service that looks for potential defects upon filing. Currently only the Appellant's Brief, Appellee's Brief, and Reply Brief. Ultimately we will do this for all.
• Automatically report defects to the appropriate staff member, greatly reducing the time required to "quality control" (QC) the document for defects.
• If the defects are sufficiently serious to warrant rejection of the filing, the defects are automatically included in the deficiency form (BR-5 docketing letter).
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Test Types• Case Number/Caption• Court Name/Originating Court Name• Brief Type (Appellant, Appellee, Reply)• Volume Limitations (Word Count, etc.)• Scanned Document• ROA Citations• Social Security Numbers• Signature• The required sections of the brief (e.g.
Certificate of Interested Persons, Table of Contents/Authorities, Statement of Jurisdiction, etc.).
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IMMEDIATE NOTICE OF POSSIBLE ERRORS
RESULTS
• 4562 Briefs Docketed (1 Nov 18 – 4 Oct 19):
– 1125 Docketed with Errors– 24.66% Error Rate– 1258 Corrected After Errors– 27.58% Correction Rate
• Over 500 Hours of Staff Work Saved.
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PRACTICE NOTES AND REFERENCES
• Common Errors
• Practice Tips
• Filing Resources and Assistance
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• Incorrect Events and Reliefs (Searchable list on ECF Page).– To Upload a Sealed Document You Must Use the Event “ECF Motion
and/or Document Filed Under Temporary Seal” in the Category of “Under Seal.”
– Extension Beyond 30 Days Requires a Motion.
• No Appearance Form.• Missing/Incorrect ROA or Authority Citations (Cite Link).• Missing Certificate of Compliance on motions, responses, replies,
rehearings, etc. • Missing Certificate of Conference.• Incomplete Transcript Order Forms (Required even if transcripts are
not needed). • Incorrect Caption Format.• Must File record Excerpts Separately. Do Not Attach to Brief.
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COMMON ERRORS
• Register Early and Keep Information Updated: Member Fifth Circuit Bar, PACER Enrollment for the Fifth Circuit, and filed, updated Appearance Form.
• Renewals: Every 5 years. Notice sent to registered email (Keep Updated).
• Notice of Docketing Activity (NDA): Check for any Attachments. If think incorrectly filed, don’t refile. Please call.
• Docketing Letters Contain All the Necessary Information.
• Extensions:
• All requests for extension must include justification.
• Level 1 Extension = Only 30 days total. Must file motion for extension beyond 30 days.
• Court Considers Criminal Cases where Defendant is Sentenced to 24 months or less as “Short Release” cases, which are closely monitored.
• Reply Briefs: FRAP 31(a)(1) changed to allow 21 days for filing of Reply brief from filing of Appellee’s brief. Court greatly disfavors requests for extension to file Reply brief.
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PRACTICE TIPS
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RESOURCES AND ASSISTANCE• Website: www.ca5.uscourts.gov• Fifth Circuit Life of the Appeal Flow Chart• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)• Practitioner Guide• Guide to Filing Emergency Motions• Brief Guidance and Sample Briefs• Record Reference Guide (Cite link)• Case Management Teams Contact List• Help Desk: 877.232-1038 or
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CASE TEAMS CONTACT LIST
STATISTICAL REVIEW1 July 2018 – 30 June 2019
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NEW APPEALSCircuit 2018 2019
DC 932 965
1ST 1,226 1,339
2ND 4,212 4,087
3RD 2,972 2,933
4TH 4,211 4,470
5TH 7,347 7,164
6TH 4,304 4,194
7TH 2,800 2,650
8TH 2,811 2,768
9TH 10,661 10,137
10TH 1,836 1,701
11TH 5,908 5,376
TOTAL 49,220 47,784
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NEW APPEALS BY STATE
2018 2019
TX = 5001 LA = 1331 Other = 565 MS = 450
TX 68.1%
MS 6.1%
Other 7.7%
LA 18.1%
TX = 5007 LA = 1092 Other = 608 MS = 457
TX 69.9%
MS 6.4%
Other 8.5%
LA 15.2%
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NEW APPEALS BY CASE TYPECriminal 30.7%
Prisoner Appeals 27.5%
Successive Habeas Corpus 7.0%
IFP Mandamus 1.9%
Federal Question 8.4%
Diversity 4.8%
Mandamus 0.4%
Civil Rights 8.5%
Bankruptcy 1.0%
U.S. Civil 1.7%
Other 0.6%
Agency 0.7%
BIA 6.2%
Miscellaneous 0.6%
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Cases Commenced
Procedural Terminations
Total Merits Terminations
Merits Terminations
After Oral Hearing
Merits Terminations
on Briefs
% Placed on the Oral
Argument Calendar
% Reversed
Criminal 2,197 424 1,859 227 1,380 12.2% 4.9%
U.S. Prisoner Petitions 612 300 399 20 327 5.0% 6.1%
Other U.S. Civil 204 85 100 47 35 47.0% 19.5%
Private Prisoner Petitions 1,359 686 719 56 562 7.8% 3.6%
Other Private Civil 1,502 763 780 416 233 53.3% 12.5%
Bankruptcy 74 27 48 29 13 60.4% 14.3%
Administrative Agency 505 222 224 43 153 19.1% 2.0%
Original Proceedings* 671 214 523 2 478 0.3% 0.0%
Miscellaneous 40 2 0 0 38 0.0% 0.0%
TOTAL 7,164 2,723 4,652 840 3,219 18.1% 6.5%
Total Number of PublishedOpinions
Total Number of
Unpublished Opinions
Number of Petitionsfor Panel
Rehearing
Number of Panel
RehearingsGranted
Number of Petitions for Rehearing En Banc
Number Granted
Fifth Circuit 473 2,397 234 15 190 6
STATISTICAL SNAPSHOTFor the 12 month period ending June 30, 2019
*Including successive habeas corpus and pro se mandamus petitions
CASE PROCESSING TIMES2018-2019
•Notice of Appeal to Filing of Last Brief: 4.9 Months
•Last Brief to Hearing or Submission: 5.3 Months
•Hearing to Final Disposition: 1.3 Months
•Submission to Final Disposition 0.5 Months
•Notice of Appeal to CA 5 Final Disposition: 9.1 Months
The median time from filing of the Notice of Appeal to CA 5 final disposition in oral argument cases is 13.9 Months.
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• 29,713 Total Active ECF Filers (Attorney & Non-Attorney)
• 26,673 Total Active Bar Members
• 23,726 Total Active Bar Members Registered for ECF
• 14,777 Active ECF Filer Accounts Created in the Last 5 Years
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5TH CIRCUIT BAR
QUESTIONS?
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