IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF HAWAII
FILED IN THE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF HAWAII
IN RE: DISTRICT OF HAWAII Jun 01, 2020, 12:42 pm
RESPONSE TO COVID-19 LIAN ABERNATHY, CLERK
EMERGENCY
JUNE 1, 2020 TEMPORARY GENERAL ORDER REGARDING
DISTRICT OF HAWAII RESPONSE TO COVID-19 EMERGENCY
This Temporary General Order updates and supplements the Court’s April
16, 2020 “Temporary General Order Regarding District of Hawaii Response to
COVID-19 Emergency.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and
other health authorities, including the State of Hawaii Department of Health, have
advised that a measured reopening of the District’s courthouse is possible with
appropriate protective measures in place.
The Court has carefully considered and weighed the interest in reopening the
courthouse with the continued need to protect the public, court employees, and
counsel from being exposed to the COVID-19 virus, and with the agreement of all
of the judges of the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii, the
Court orders as follows:
The courthouse will open for non-jury matters on June 15, 2020. No jury
trial will commence before August 3, 2020.
Mitigation Measures Effective June 15, 2020:
• All persons entering the courthouse, including but not limited to litigants,
attorneys, members of the public, media, vendors, and contractors, shall be
required to wear a face mask covering the nose and mouth while in all public
areas of the courthouse. The sole exceptions are for children too young to
wear a face mask or for those who cannot wear a face mask due to medical
necessity;
• Anyone seeking entry to the courthouse without a facemask will be provided
a free facemask at the courthouse entry. Anyone refusing to wear a
facemask as required by this Order shall be denied entry, or removed from
the courthouse, by the United States Marshals Service;
• Hand sanitizer stations will be made available throughout the courthouse,
including immediately upon entry and by all elevators;
• Anyone in the courthouse will be required to maintain social distancing of at
least six feet, unless exempted by the Court. For instance, while at the entry
pavilion or waiting for an elevator, all visitors are required to maintain at
least a six-foot distance from the nearest person. The courtrooms will have
chairs clearly designated for use which meet the six-foot distancing
requirement.
• Entry to the courthouse will be denied to anyone who has been diagnosed as
having COVID-19 within the previous 14 days; anyone living with or in
close proximity to anyone diagnosed as having COVID-19 within the
previous 14 days; and anyone having symptoms of a COVID-19 infection,
including fever, chills, shortness of breath, unexplained coughing, and new
loss of taste or smell. Entry will also be denied to anyone required by the
State of Hawaii to be in self-quarantine.
All Non-jury Court Proceedings as of June 15, 2020:
• The courthouse will reopen for all civil and criminal non-jury matters on
June 15, 2020;
• In order to minimize the risk of COVID-19 transmission, the Court will
make every effort to minimize traffic in the courthouse when it reopens.
Each presiding district or magistrate judge will determine whether civil
matters, including case management matters, settlement conferences, and
hearings, will be taken off calendar pursuant to Local Rule 7.1, or conducted
by telephone, video,1 or in court;
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Any video hearing in civil cases will be conducted using Zoom. The Court will post
instructions for Zoom use on the Court’s website.
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• Each presiding judge will determine how to proceed with civil non-jury
trials;
• At the discretion of the presiding judge, the Court will continue to conduct
certain criminal proceedings as set forth in this Court’s March 30, 2020
Order Authorizing the Use of Telephonic Hearings Pursuant to the CARES
Act;
• Certain criminal proceedings that fall outside the CARES Act Order will be
conducted in court, if possible.
• If a presiding judge elects to proceed with a hearing by telephone or Zoom,
all hearings will be available to members of the public and the media, to the
extent practicable. Specific information will be available on each case’s
individual docket on PACER, and further instructions can be found on the
Court’s website. Members of the public and media are strictly prohibited
from recording or broadcasting any hearing (whether telephonic or Zoom),
in whole or in part, in any fashion. Failure to abide by this restriction may
result in sanctions. Further restrictions are set forth on the Court’s website,
www.hid.uscourts.gov, and may change from time to time.
• Filings will continue to be processed in civil and criminal cases via the CM-
ECF electronic system and by mail. Rather than coming to the Clerk’s
Office, paper filings must be deposited in the drop box located outside the
courthouse;
• Pro se litigants may file by email (
[email protected]) or by using
the drop box located outside the courthouse. File-stamped copies will be
returned by United States mail. Anyone seeking information from the
Clerk’s Office is encouraged to call the help desk at (808) 541-1890.
• Until further notice, in both civil and criminal matters, no courtesy copies of
filings are to be provided to chambers unless specifically ordered by a
presiding judge.
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All Jury Proceedings as of August 3, 2020:
• Some jury trials will be permitted to resume starting August 3, 2020. Prior
to that date, the Court will issue more detailed guidelines and criteria that the
judges will consider when determining whether it is safe to conduct a
particular jury trial. The guidelines will be posted on the Court’s website
and may be updated from time to time;
• With respect to criminal trials, each presiding judge assigned to any trial
scheduled to commence before August 3, 2020 will make appropriate
findings and enter an order tolling time under the Speedy Trial Act; that is,
although all judges agree that no trials can be held before August 3, 2020,
each presiding judge will make the individual findings required by the
Speedy Trial Act. For trials scheduled to commence before August 3, 2020,
counsel should meet and attempt to reach a stipulation as to a new trial date
and tolling time under the Speedy Trial Act. For criminal trials scheduled to
commence on or after August 3, 2020, counsel should confer as to whether
the currently scheduled trial date is possible under this Order or is realistic
given the time needed to prepare for trial and the ongoing pandemic.
ORDERED ON BEHALF OF THE COURT:
DATED: Honolulu, Hawaii, June 1, 2020.
/s/ J. Michael Seabright
J. Michael Seabright
Chief United States District Judge
In Re District of Hawaii Response to COVID-19 Emergency; June 1, 2020 Temporary General
Order Regarding District of Hawaii Response to COVID-19 Emergency
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