Law360 is providing free access to its coronavirus coverage to make sure all members of the legal community have accurate information in this time of uncertainty and change. Use the form below to sign up for any of our weekly newsletters. Signing up for any of our section newsletters will opt you in to the weekly Coronavirus briefing.
Sign up for our Appellate newsletter
You must correct or enter the following before you can sign up:
Thank You!
Law360 (April 15, 2020, 3:03 PM EDT ) The U.S. Supreme Court is now requiring only a "single paper copy" for document filings in cases that have not yet been taken up for review, and has carved out several types of filings for which an electronic copy is sufficient.
The changes to the paper filing requirements appear to be the court's latest response to the coronavirus pandemic, in which it has already extended deadlines and changed the process for in-person delivery of filings.
As a result of the "miscellaneous order" issued Wednesday morning, litigants only need file one paper copy of any type of document in a case in which the justices haven't yet voted for certiorari, or review. Under the court's previous rules, parties had to file 40 paper copies of cert petitions, briefs in opposition and other filings.
The Supreme Court also told attorneys Wednesday not to file any paper copies of motions for an extension of time, waivers of the right to respond to a petition, blanket consents to the filing of amicus briefs and motions to delay distribution of a cert petition.
"These modifications will remain in effect until further order of the court," the order said.
Finally, the court said parties were "strongly encouraged to use electronic service if feasible" and relieved them of the obligation to serve paper filings on one another if they have already agreed to electronic service.
Since the outbreak, the Supreme Court has extended deadlines for certain filings in cases for which it hasn't yet granted certiorari, and has been granting other extensions for delays related to COVID-19 disruptions as a matter of course.
The court has also changed the in-person delivery protocol for paper filings. Earlier this month, the court said parties should send paper filings by mail or commercial mail, rather than delivering them in person. No longer would it guarantee that filings delivered at the court's North Drive entrance before 2:00 p.m. be sent to the clerk's office the same day.
Perhaps the most notable change to the Supreme Court's term has been oral arguments. The court canceled its March and April oral argument sessions and rescheduled around half those cases for argument by teleconference in May. Those cases include a high-profile battle over access to President Donald Trump's financial records, which the court said Wednesday it will hear May 12.
--Editing by Stephen Berg.
For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.
