Federal Civil Practice

The newsletter of the ISBA’s Section on Federal Civil Practice

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2011 Articles

7th Circuit E-Discovery Pilot update By Kathryn A. Kelly December 2011 Now in its second phase, the Seventh Circuit Electronic Discovery Pilot Project has launched <discoverypilot.com>. The Web site provides information about the Project's Principles, as well as committee information.
Appeals court examines amounts in controversy By Michael R. Lied December 2011 In two recent cases the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals considered how to determine what amount of money is at issue in a lawsuit.
Could summary jury trials provide a lower-cost litigation alternative? By Patrick J. Arnold, Jr. March 2011 A summary jury trial is nonbinding and is intended to be a flexible process. An abbreviated procedure is used, whereby the advisory jury may hear only lawyers' arguments, or may also hear some testimony from witnesses for both sides.
Double whammy—Employers engaged in systematic wage theft best beware By Glenn R. Gaffney June 2011 A January, 2011 Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals decision now allows plaintiff class action lawyers to combine FLSA collective “opt-in” actions with state law “opt-out” class actions.
Judicial profile: District Judge James E. Shadid By Timothy J. Howard September 2011 Learn more about Judge Shadid, who was sworn in earlier this year.
Judicial profile: Judge Gary S. Feinerman By Marron Mahoney March 2011 Get to know Gary S. Feinerman, one of the newest district court judges for the Northern District of Illinois.
Letter from the Chair By William J. Brinkmann September 2011 A message from Section Chair William J. Brinkmann.
Litigating disputes with the FDIC: Issues facing officers and directors of failed banks By Rebecca L. Dandy June 2011 A look at some of the issues former officers and directors now find themselves faced with in the midst of litigation where the FDIC is seeking to hold them personally liable for the losses of failed banks.
New federal procedural rules By Jay H. Scholl March 2011 A brief review of the December 2010 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Pleading affirmative defenses post-Iqbal and Twombly By Ferne P. Wolf December 2011 Just how much additional language will be sufficient to satisfy Twombly and Iqbal’s enhanced pleading requirement remains to be seen.
A proposed jury instruction for “willfulness” in FACTA cases By Isaac J. Colunga December 2011 Courts have not yet spelled out what it means exactly to be “willful” as opposed to “negligent.” In many cases it’s a close call, and it depends on the facts and circumstances of each case. The purpose of this article is to find some common ground.
A reader on service of process under FRCP 4 By Ambrose V. McCall September 2011 Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m) provides that a complaint to serve a defendant must be filed within 120 days.
The Rule 30(B)(6) witness deposition—A primer By Stanley N. Wasser September 2011 An helpful explanation of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6).  
Stanley J. Roszkowski United States Courthouse dedicated By John J. Holevas December 2011 The beautiful Stanley J. Roszkowski Courthouse is a six-story building which features a glass atrium entrance and a glass enclosed jury assembly room. The facility will house the United States Clerk’s Office, two bankruptcy courtrooms, three district courtrooms, as well as offices for the U.S. Marshals, U.S. Attorney, probation and pre-trial services, the United States Public Defender, Department of Homeland Security, and GSA.
To disclose or not to disclose under FRCP(a)(2) —That now is the question! By Ambrose V. McCall June 2011 The Seventh Circuit has issued a trio of opinions during the past six months or more that stress the need for counsel to evaluate what opinion testimony at trial might require counsel to make disclosures beforehand under FRCP 26(a)(2).