Cleveland Law Library Weblog

All Federal Courts now Accept Electronic Filing

According to the US Courts News Website, all Federal Courts are now accepting electronic filing. The last court to join this effort is the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Documents can be filed using the "judiciary’s Case Management-Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) system". To learn more about the CM/ECF system, click here.

The Cleveland Law Library will be Closed Monday, May 28, 2012

The Cleveland Law Library will be Closed on Monday, May 28, 2012 in honor of Memorial Day. We will reopen on Tuesday, May 29, 2012 at 8:30am. In the interim, please check out our website at www.clevelandlawlibrary.org.

Ohio Auditor of State Fraud Reporting System is Now Live

The brand new Ohio Auditor of State Fraud Reporting System went live on Friday, May 4, 2012. This system will allow any Ohio citizen to anonymously report fraud complaints against public offices. Complaints can be called in to the hotline at 1-866 -FRAUD OH (1-866-372-8364) or mailed to the following address:

Ohio Auditor of State’s Office
Special Investigations Unit
88 East Broad Street
P.O. Box 1140
Columbus, OH 43215
The Auditor will keep track of all reports in a public database that will be updated weekly with information on the nature of each complaint, the entity involved and the status of the state's investigation. Click here for more information about the new system.

Ohio Supreme Court Will Soon Swear in 250 More Lawyers

The Ohio Supreme Court will soon be swearing in 250 lawyers. According to the Court's press release about the results of the Feb. 2012 bar exam in Columbus:

"Out of 397 applicants, 250 applicants (63 percent) received passing scores; out of 224 first-time applicants, 79 percent received passing scores. This year’s February bar exam results for all test-takers compare favorably to previous years, which saw 69.77 percent receiving passing scores in 2011, 65.6 percent in 2010, 61.2 percent in 2009, 65.5 percent in 2008 and 63 percent in 2007."

The Court has also posted the list of all the successful candidates' names.

Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals is Seeking Comments until May 18th on Proposed Amendments to Local Rules 3, 14, 21 and 45

The Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals is seeking comments until May 18th on proposed Amendments to Local Rules 3 (costs), 14 (extensions of time), 21 (oral argument) and 45 (fees for extraordinary writs). According to the Court's press release, comments on the proposed changes can be send to ulv@8thappeals.com until May 18th.

Lawyers Asked to Comment on Proposed Amendments to 6th Circuit Rules and IOPs

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit is proposing "comprehensive amendments" to both the 6th Circuit Rules and IOPs. Interested parties are being asked to email their comments to Leonard Green, Clerk, at ca06-rules_comments@ca6.uscourts.gov no later than July 12, 2012.

Changes Coming to Ohio Rules on Jury Service Effective May 22, 2012

Effective on May 22, 2012, HB 268 will make some changes to jury service provisions of the Ohio Revised Code. The Ohio Judicial Conference has issued a great summary as well as a chart to identfy the changes. The summary lists the following changes:

Permits municipal courts to set their own fees (1901.25)

 

Establishes that a jury commissioner may be a court employee (2313.01)

 

Authorizes courts to order the beginning date of the jury year (2313.05)

Authorizes courts to order the number of jurors to be drawn or leave to commissioners discretion, adds that court can order a additional number of jurors at any time (2313.07)

 

Establishes that questionnaires used for voir dire should have a prominent legend advising the juror of the right to request and have an in-camera interview, clarifies that counsel present at the in-camera hearing is that of the parties, not that a juror has counsel present. (2313.11 and 2313.18)

 

Requires the court to file an order regarding the retention period for all documents/electronic media filed with commissioners of jurors. (2313.23)

 

Authorizes courts in civil cases, where the jury is called but the case is settled, to tax incurred civil jury fees. (2335.28)

 

Authorizes courts in criminal cases to assess jury fees as cost if defendant enters a plea of guilty or no contest less than 24 hours before the scheduled trial. (2947.23)

Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor and OSBA President Carol Marx Have Issued Video Messages in Remembrance of Law Day Today

President Eisenhower 1st established Law Day in 1958. Ten years later, in 1968, Congress recognized May 1st as the official day to celebrate Law Day. Today, Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor has issued a video message in remembrance of Law Day. This year's theme is “No Courts. No Justice. No Freedom."   Expounding on this theme, Justice O'Connor states that:

“This Law Day is an opportunity for us to recommit ourselves to ensuring that our courts are properly funded... It is an opportunity to see to it that access to justice is universal; that the courthouse doors are open to all; and that we always have fair, impartial, and peaceful venues to resolve our disputes.”

Ohio State Bar Association President Carol Marx has also issued a video message and a written statement, both with a theme similar to Justice O'Connor's.

Cuyahoga County's Revised Domestic Violence Rule (Local Rule 26) Is Effective Today, 5/1/12

Today, May 1, 2012, is the effective date for Cuyahoga County Domestic Relation's Court's revised Domestic Violence Rule, Local Rule 26. The Court's website also provides access to domestic violence forms, information and FAQ's. All of the Court's Local Rules can be found on the Court's website.

Lawschooltransparency.com Provides Key Financial and Job Placement Information for Potential Law Students

Lawschooltransparency.com has launched a new database that provides key financial and job placement information for potential law students. I compared the numbers for Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland-Marshall to see how local grads are doing. Case currently costs $42,564 compared to CM at $27,204. Barring scholarships and grants, Case 2015 grads face $228,904 in debt, compared to $157,010 for CM grads. Interestingly, however, their employment statistics are pretty close at 64.6% for Case and 62.9% for CM. However, the website reports more under-employed lawyers (i.e., unemployed, part-time or in non-professional jobs) at Case (31.8%) than at CM (22.5%). The final statistic I compared was location of employment, and 53.6% of Case grads stay in Ohio, compared to 96% of CM grads.

Click here for a good article about this new database from law.com.