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Law360 (March 12, 2020, 2:20 PM EDT ) Massachusetts federal courts will remain open for business, but jury trials scheduled to begin before April 27 will be delayed as a precaution and people returning from countries heavily impacted by COVID-19 or who show signs of having the disease will not be allowed in, the chief judge announced Thursday.
In separate orders, Chief U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV set forth guidance for how the state's three federal courthouses should operate during the pandemic. In addition to delaying jury trials, all deadlines related to trials that were set to begin before April 27 will be suspended. Individual judges presiding over criminal cases are instructed to balance the new restrictions with defendants' rights to a speedy and public trial, and defense lawyers may seek exceptions on a case-by-case basis, according to the chief judge.
Judges will still be able to conduct hearings, bench trials and other proceedings, but are encouraged to use videoconferencing or teleconferencing whenever possible, according to the order.
The continuances will not affect any major trials unless they spill into May. The first bellwether in a multidistrict suit accusing GlaxoSmithKline of failing to warn pregnant mothers that the anti-nausea medicine Zofran can cause birth defects is scheduled to begin May 4. Judge Saylor is also presiding over the case and has said in court that the virus outbreak may delay the trial's start, but Thursday's order would keep it on track unless it is extended.
A separate order states that the courthouses will ban entry to anyone who has visited China, Italy, Iran, Japan or South Korea within the previous 14 days. Those who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, live with someone affected by the disease, or who are showing symptoms consistent with COVID-19 will also not be allowed entry, the order states. Many courthouses across the country have put in place similar restrictions.
Massachusetts state courthouses remained open as of Thursday afternoon, with enhanced cleaning procedures in place for certain "high-touch" areas. Speaking with reporters in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Gov. Charlie Baker said more direction regarding state courts should be coming soon.
"The courts are talking to folks on our team and to others about how they want to mange their case load," Baker said. "My expectation is you'll probably hear from them sometime shortly."
Separately Thursday, New Hampshire state courts postponed all criminal and civil jury trials slated to begin in the next 30 days.
Elsewhere in the U.S., judges in Texas' Harris County Civil District Court said Wednesday they were suspending jury trials in the jurisdiction for the rest of the month. In New York, federal courts in both the Southern and Eastern districts have restricted courthouse access, while the Seattle immigration court has been shuttered due to the virus, which has sickened more than 130,000 people worldwide and killed nearly 5,000.
--Editing by Orlando Lorenzo.
Update: This story has been updated with details on the Zofran trial and a quote from Gov. Baker.
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