UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
ORDER
Appropriate public notice and an opportunity for comment having been given, pursuant
to a majority vote of the active judges of this court;
IT IS ORDERED that effective March 1, 2022, the Local Rules of the United States
District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana are hereby amended as follows:
Proposed Amendments to Local Civil Rules
LR 9.2, Social Security Cases:
(D) In all cases under this local rule, filings must comport with the privacy
protections of FRCP 5.2.
LR 23.1(B), Class Actions:
Within 91 days after filing of a complaint in a class action or filing of a notice of
removal of the class action from state court, whichever is later, plaintiff must move
for class certification under FRCP 23(c)(1), unless this period is extended upon
motion for good cause and order by the court. In all civil actions in which a class
action is pleaded, the party alleging the class action must, at a time directed by the
case management or scheduling order approved by the court, move for class
certification under FRCP 23(c)(1).
Local Admiralty Rules
LAR 64.5, Notices:
Unless otherwise ordered by the court, or otherwise provided by law, all notices
required to be published by statute, rule or order of court must be published in The
Times-Picayune New Orleans Advocate.
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Proposed Amendments to Local Rules for Lawyer Disciplinary Enforcement
LRLD 5, Recommendation by Lawyer Disciplinary Committee:
5. Recommendation by Lawyer Disciplinary Committee. The Lawyer
Disciplinary Committee assists the court with the administration of lawyer
disciplinary enforcement. Among other duties, the committee reviews
disciplinary complaints and makes recommendations to the court regarding
the disposition of complaints. The Committee may conduct a limited
investigation prior to making a recommendation to the court. The Committee
may request non-compulsory (a) interviews and (b) production of documents.
The Committee may issue subpoenas for documents and the appearance of
witnesses, with the approval of the Chief Judge. The Committee may
request additional investigative powers from the Chief Judge as necessary.
The Committee may also request additional documents from the original
jurisdiction imposing discipline, if applicable.
LRLD 6.3, Matters Resolved by Summary Discipline:
6.3. Evaluation by En Banc Court. After consideration of the materials set forth
above, the en banc court must:
6.3.1. Dismiss the complaint,
6.3.2. Impose summary discipline, or
6.3.3. Docket the matter for hearing. ,or
6.3.4. Take such other action as the court deems appropriate.
LRLD 7.8 and 7.9, Matters Docketed for Hearing:
7.8. Proposed Settlement. If the respondent submits a proposed resolution of
the disciplinary action after a matter has been allotted to a judge and
docketed for hearing, the allotted judge must refer the proposal to the en
banc court with or without a recommendation, for a determination of whether
the settlement proposal should be accepted or rejected by the en banc court.
After the en banc court determines whether to accept or reject the settlement
proposal, the matter will be returned to the docket of the allotted judge for
handling in the appropriate manner.
7.87.9. Dismissal or Imposition of Discipline by En Banc Court. Except as provided
in LRLD 7.8, A after the allotted judge’s report is submitted to the en banc
court, the matter will be reallotted to the Chief Judge. All motions filed
thereafter must be submitted to and decided by the Chief Judge. After
consideration of the record, including but not limited to the complaint and the
response, the information received from a jurisdiction that has imposed
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discipline, the Lawyer Disciplinary Committee’s recommendation and results
of its limited investigation, the transcript of the hearing and any exhibits
admitted into the record, and the allotted judge’s internal report, the en banc
court must determine whether a violation occurred and, if so, the disciplinary
sanctions, if any, to be imposed and enter its order and findings either
dismissing the complaint or imposing appropriate discipline. The clerk of
court must send the respondent the en banc court’s order by email, and also
serve the respondent with a copy of the en banc court’s order by certified
mail, return receipt requested.
Proposed Amendments to Local Rules for Disability Inactive Status [LRDisability]
LRDisability 1.5:
1.5. Confidentiality. All pleadings and attachments containing confidential health
information shall be filed under seal, and all filings are subject to the privacy
protections of Rule 5.2(d), (e), and (f) of the Federal Rules of Civil
Procedure.
LRDisability 4:
4. Transfer to Disability Inactive Status When No Disciplinary Proceeding Is
Pending. Any lawyer claiming that he or she should be transferred to
disability inactive status, when there is no disciplinary proceeding or
investigation is pending, shall file an appropriate pleading in this court. The
lawyer shall append to the pleading pertinent information, documentation,
and evidence which supports the lawyer’s claim that he or she should be
transferred to disability inactive status. The lawyer shall also certify in the
pleading that there is no disciplinary proceeding or investigation pending
against him or her and that he or she has not been notified and has no
knowledge or reason to believe that such an investigation or proceeding is
about to commence. The en banc court may then summarily transfer the
lawyer to disability inactive status, without the need for a hearing, or take any
other action the court deems appropriate. A copy of the order transferring the
lawyer to disability inactive status shall be sent to the respondent or his or
her legal representative by email and served on the lawyer or the lawyer’s
legal representative by United States certified mail, return receipt requested.
LRDisability 5. Transfer to Disability Inactive Status When Disciplinary Proceeding Is
Pending.
5.2. The hearing shall be conducted before a judge randomly allotted the case on
expedited basis and shall be confidential. The Lawyer Disciplinary
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Committee shall be allowed to file a motion to question the attorney and
review documents and evidence in a hearing under this Rule. Within fifteen
(15) days of the hearing, or as soon as practicable, the allotted judge shall
file an internal report to the en banc court.
…..
5.4. If, after receiving the internal report of the allotted judge and materials
submitted by the lawyer, the en banc court determines the claim of inability
to defend to be invalid, the disciplinary proceeding or investigation shall
resume immediately. A finding by the en banc court that the lawyer’s claim
of an inability to assist in his/her defense due to mental or physical incapacity
was frivolous, or that any documents submitted or statements made by the
attorney in making such a claim were frivolous, may be considered in
recommending discipline in the underlying proceeding.
The Disciplinary Rules shall include the preamble, “The Local Lawyer Disciplinary
Rules may be cited as ‘LRD___’” and Disability Rules shall include the preamble, “The
Local Lawyer Disability Rules may be cited as ‘LRDisability___’.” and the preambles
and designations shall be included on both of the court’s websites, and the court shall
request that they be included in the next Thomson Reuters publication.
Proposed Amendments to Local Criminal Rules
LCrR 5.2 Assignment of Matters to the Magistrate Judge
A magistrate judge will be designated as the criminal duty magistrate judge. All
magistrate judges shall perform criminal duty responsibilities on a rotating basis after
regular business hours, on weekends, and as the court specifies. The criminal duty
magistrate judge shall:
1. Conduct preliminary proceedings in criminal cases, pursuant to Rules 3, 4, 5,
5.1, 40 and 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure;
2. Receive returns of the Grand Jury;
3. Set conditions of bail and order release or detention of arrested persons in
accordance with 18 U.S.C. §3141, except that (1) pursuant to 18 U.S.C.
§3142, the magistrate judge who initially sets the conditions of release shall
also conduct any subsequent proceedings related to detention or conditions
of release of the defendant while pending trial, and (2) pursuant to 18 U.S.C.
§3141, the assigned district judge shall conduct all subsequent proceedings
related to detention or conditions of release while pending sentence or
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appeal unless referred by the judge to the magistrate judge who initially sets
the conditions of release;
4. Conduct the arraignment in criminal cases;
5. Conduct proceedings in petty offense cases brought pursuant to the
Migratory Bird Treaty Act and under the Central Violations Bureau.
28th
New Orleans, Louisiana, this _____ day of February, 2022.
____________________________________________
NANNETTE JOLIVETTE BROWN, CHIEF JUDGE
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