RULE 50
ASSIGNMENTS
(Amended September 10, 2020)
(a) Assignment of Judges
Assignment of Judges to criminal matters shall be made in accordance with a general policy
on assignments adopted from time to time by the Judges of the Court in the interest of the
effective administration of justice. The personnel of the Clerk's office shall not reveal to any
person, other than a Judge or the Clerk of this Court, the order of assignment of Judges or the
identity of the Judge assigned to a particular case, until such case has been filed and assigned.
(b) Individual Calendar System
All cases will be assigned to a single Judge from filing to termination. In the event that it is
subsequently determined that there is pending in this District a related case, or, if one is later
filed, the later filed case should normally be transferred to the Judge having the earliest filed
case. A supervised release matter, however, shall not be treated as a pending case for purposes
of this rule; generally, a supervised release proceeding involving the same defendant should be
transferred to the judge assigned the later filed indictment. A case may be reassigned at the
discretion of the Chief Judge.
(c) Assignment of Judges to Special Proceedings
At any given time one Judge may be designated to hear special proceedings for a particular
seat of Court. Each such Judge shall be assigned to hear special proceedings for a designated
period, on a rotating basis. The personnel of the Clerk's office shall not reveal to any person,
other than a Judge or the Clerk of the Court, the identity of the Judge assigned to hear special
proceedings or the order of assignment of Judges.
(d) Substitution
In the event that justice requires that some action be taken in a case in the absence of the
assigned Judge, another Judge may consent to act in his or her behalf.
