GENERAL RULES FOR TRIALS
BEFORE JUDGE BERNARD M. JONES
PLEASE READ CAREFULLY PRIOR TO TRIAL
1. Be on time for each court session. Trial engagements take precedence over any other
business. If you have matters in other courtrooms, arrange in advance for the handling
of such matters.
2. Immediately prior to the beginning of trial, each party shall submit to the Courtroom
Deputy three sets of the party’s (a) list of witnesses, (b) list of exhibits, and (c) exhibit
notebooks. Exhibits are to be marked numerically, including the case number, and
are to be placed in three-ring binders separated by tabs (court time may not be used
for marking exhibits). Judge Jones and his law clerk will use two sets. The third set
will be placed on the witness stand and will be the record copy of the exhibits, with
the original exhibit sticker affixed. (The Courtroom Deputy will remove any exhibits
not admitted into trial before the record copy goes to the jury room).
3. Stand when you address the Court. This includes the making of objections. (Counsel
with physical disabilities are excused from this requirement.)
4. Always stand a respectful distance from the jury. Statements and arguments to the
jury will be made from the lectern.
5. In your opening statement to the jury, do not argue the case and do not discuss law.
Only present a concise summary of the facts to follow. Do not describe in detail what
individual witnesses will say. Unless the case is unusually complex, each party will
be limited to 10 minutes.
6. Stand when you question witnesses. (Counsel with physical disabilities are excused
from this requirement.) Remain at the lectern unless given permission to approach
the witness, diagram, bench, or the like.
7. If you intend to question a witness about a group of documents, avoid delay by having
all the documents with you when you start the examination.
8. Except for children, address witnesses by their surnames, for example, Mr. A,
Sergeant B, or Dr. C.
9. Do not greet or introduce yourself to adverse witnesses. Commence your cross-
examination without preliminaries.
10. When you object in the presence of the jury, make your objection short and to the
point. Do not argue the objection or with the Court’s ruling in the presence of the
jury. Do not make motions in the presence of the jury. Such matters may be raised
at the first recess without waiving any rights.
11. Do not face or otherwise appear to address yourself to jurors when questioning a
witness.
12. Never assert your opinion as to the credibility of a witness, the culpability of a civil
litigant, or the guilt or innocence of an accused. Do not assert personal knowledge of
a fact in issue or assert a fact not in evidence.
13. Do not react to a witness or other counsel’s statement with any gesture or facial
expression signifying agreement, disagreement, approval, or disapproval. Advise
your clients they are subject to this same limitation.
14. When another counsel has the floor, do not distract the Court or jury by audibly
conversing with your client or co-counsel, noticeably passing notes, rummaging
through papers, or other conspicuous conduct.
15. Do not leave the courtroom while trial is in progress without obtaining leave of the
Court.
16. Where more than one attorney represents a party, only the attorney handling the
witness may respond to an objection or raise an objection regarding that witness’
testimony.
17. Presentation of exhibits to the jury should ordinarily be by use of the overhead
projector or similar means of presentation. The Court does not ordinarily permit
exhibits to be passed to the jury but may permit it if the exhibit is particularly
significant and other means of presentation are impractical.
18. Do not publish an exhibit to the jury, with visual presentation equipment or otherwise,
before the exhibit has been admitted into evidence.
19. The judiciary’s privacy policy restricts the publication of certain personal data in
documents filed with the Court. The policy requires limiting Social Security and
financial account numbers to the last four digits, using only initials for the names of
minor children, and limiting dates of birth to the year. (For criminal cases, also limit
home addresses to city and state.) However, if such information is elicited during
testimony or other court proceedings, it will become available to the public when the
official transcript is filed at the courthouse unless, and until, it is redacted. The better
practice is for you to avoid introducing this information into the record in the first
place. Please take this into account when questioning witnesses or making other
statements in court. If a restricted item is mentioned in court, you may ask to have it
stricken from the record or partially redacted to conform to the privacy policy, or the
Court may do so on its own motion.
20. If you have any reason to anticipate that any question of law or evidence is particularly
difficult, give the Court as much notice as possible.
21. If you desire to have daily copy or any other extraordinary court reporter services
during trial, you must so notify the Chief Deputy Court Clerk a minimum of two
weeks before the date the case is scheduled to be called for trial.
22. Do not bring food or beverages into the courtroom. Water is provided.
Thank you for your cooperation.
BERNARD M. JONES
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
