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Attorney Newsletter February 2022

NEWS FROM U.S. DISTRICT COURT

February 11, 2022

Applicants sought for Bankruptcy Judge.  The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals is seeking applicants for the position of Bankruptcy Judge. Current Bankruptcy Judge Charles Nail, Jr. has announced that he will retire next January. The successful applicant will serve for a 14-year appointment. Applications must be received by Monday, March 21, 2022. For more information about the position and the selection process, see the Public Notice South Dakota Bankruptcy Judge Position and Application Form posted on the district court’s website.

Proposed Rule Changes.  In the December newsletter we advised that we are in the process of updating our local rules of practice. Recently the Court made additional changes to Crim. LR 58.10 and added a new rule regarding court security officer duties: Crim. LR 57.12 and Civ. LR 83.10. As a result, the proposed rules have been updated and re-posted on the Court’s website for an additional 30 days. If you have any comments or suggestions, please email them to matt_thelen@sdd.uscourts.gov.

Ordering Transcripts—a Refresher Course.  The court uses a combination of court reporters and an electronic recording program called For the Record (FTR) to create the record. If a court reporter is present at a hearing or trial, the court reporter prepares the official record and any transcripts. If a hearing is recorded with FTR and a transcript is ordered, a court reporter prepares the transcript from the FTR recording.

How to order a transcript depends on whether you are appointed counsel under the Criminal Justice Act (CJA) or retained counsel.

1. CJA Counsel

To order a transcript of a proceeding covered by a court reporter or recorded using FTR, CJA counsel must submit an Authorization for Transcript (AUTH-24) in eVoucher. It is not sufficient to request a transcript on the record, you must submit an AUTH-24. For directions on creating an AUTH-24, go to page 70 of the CJA eVoucher Attorney User Manual located at https://www.sdd.uscourts.gov/sdevouchermanual.

2. Retained Counsel

To order a transcript if you are retained counsel, you must complete the Transcript Order Form located on the court’s website. By completing and electronically submitting the order form, the court reporter receives immediate notice and processes the order. If there was no reporter, select “No_Reporter – Digitally Recorded” from the drop-down menu and the clerk’s office will process the order.

If you request a cost estimate only and then decide to order the transcript, you must resubmit the form to order the actual transcript(s).

Note: Regardless of whether you are retained or CJA counsel, if you are ordering transcripts for an appeal, it is important to order them as soon as possible since the Eighth Circuit sets the transcript deadline at the time the notice of appeal is filed.

Friday, February 11, 2022