Louisiana Civil Appeals

LASC’s June 5 orders on COVID-19

The Louisiana Supreme Court just issued a pair of orders in response to yesterday’s executive orders by the governor.

In one order, the Court extended its own deadlines: any filings that otherwise would have been due between March 12 and June 15, 2020 will be timely if filed by June 16. To download a copy of this order, follow this link.

In the other order, the Court continued its prior orders for other Louisiana courts. This order continues to allow Louisiana courts to conduct in-person proceedings if they comply with social-distancing guidelines; it also encourages courts to hold proceedings by video or telephone conference when possible. To download a copy of this order, follow this link.

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p.s. (3:47 p.m.) Here’s a link to the Louisiana Supreme Court’s press release about today’s orders.

Two orders by the LASC today

Today the Louisiana Supreme Court issued two orders responding to the COVID-19 emergency and the governor’s latest order suspending legal deadlines.

In one order, the Court extended its own deadlines to implement the governor’s order: any filings otherwise due between March 12 and June 5, 2020, will be timely if filed no later than Monday, June 8, 2020. To download a copy of this order, follow this link.

In the other order, the Court continued Louisiana’s moratorium on jury trials through June 30, but has otherwise lifted the ban on in-person court proceedings, as long as courts mind social-distancing guidelines. The Supreme Court continues to encourage Louisiana courts to conduct proceedings by video or telephone conference whenever possible. To download a copy of this order, follow this link.

One-day La. bar exam for 2020

Today the Louisiana Supreme Court and the Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions have jointly announced cancellation of this year’s traditional three-day bar exam. Instead, a one-day exam will be administered on July 27 and October 10 in four Louisiana cities (New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lake Charles, and Shreveport). Thankfully for examinees,

The scope of the examination will also be reduced in light of the shortened testing time, and will be announced on the LASCBA’s website by Friday, May 15, 2020. This one-day, limited scope examination format will be used only for the July 27, 2020 and October 10, 2020 administrations.

For more information about this, follow these links to the Supreme Court’s press release and the Committee’s web site.

Three orders by the La. Supreme Court

The Louisiana Supreme Court has issued two orders today and one yesterday responding to the COVID-19 emergency.

First, responding to Governor Edwards’s announcement of his extension of the state’s stay-home order through May 15, the Court has extended certain deadlines until May 18, 2020. Anything that otherwise would have been due between March 12 and May 15, 2020 is now due on May 18. To download a copy of this order, follow this link. This order continues and supplements the Court’s prior order of April 6.

Second, for other Louisiana courts, the restrictions on in-person proceedings have been extended until May 18, To download a copy of this order, follow this link. This order continues and supplements the Court’s prior orders of April 22 and April 6.

Third, yesterday the Court modified the rules for mandatory CLE credit this year by increasing the limit on “self-study” CLE to 12.5 hours. To download a copy of this order, follow this link. 

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p.s. Here’s a link to today’s press release by the Louisiana Supreme Court about yesterday’s orders.

LASC to hold oral arguments by video conference

The Louisiana Supreme Court will hold its June 8–9 oral arguments by video conference. To read the Court’s announcement, follow this link. To view the docket of cases to be argued on June 8–9, follow this link.

Recapping where we are with COVID-19

Governor John Bel Edwards says that, early next week, he will announce the first phase of the state’s reopening. In anticipation of that announcement, I thought I’d recap our current situation with legal deadlines in the Louisiana Supreme Court and the courts of appeal. Why? Because, depending on the court, many filings that would have been due in March or April may need to be filed by Friday, May 1, or Monday, May 4.

In La. Proclamation No. 30 JBE 2020 (Mar. 16, 2020), the governor suspended “legal deadlines, including liberative prescription and peremptive periods applicable to legal proceedings in all courts” until at least April 13. The same suspension applied to “all other deadlines in legal proceedings in all courts ....” This proclamation directed the courts to “implement and interpret the provisions of this Order.” The suspension became effective at midnight on March 17, 2020. In La. Proclamation No. 41 JBE 2020 (Apr. 2, 2020), the governor extended these deadlines suspensions “until at least Monday, April 30, 2020.”

The word suspended may be important. Of course, I don’t claim any authority to interpret the governor’s order. With that caveat, I’m reminded of the Civil Code’s distinction between suspension and interruption of prescription. When prescription is interrupted, “the time that has run is not counted”; instead, prescription begins “to run anew from the last day of interruption.” La. Civ. Code art. 3466. In contrast, when prescription is suspended, “the period of suspension is not counted toward accrual of prescription,” and “[p]rescription commences to run again” when the suspension period ends. La. Civ. Code art. 3472. In other words, suspension merely stops the clock; it doesn’t reset the clock. I don’t know whether courts will refer to these Civil Code articles when interpreting suspended in the governor’s order, but it may be prudent to take the conservative approach and assume that the governor’s order merely stopped the clocks, as opposed to resetting them to zero, and that any legal delays will resume when 41 JBE 2020 ends.

Against that backdrop, the Louisiana Supreme Court has issued several orders implementing the governor’s orders. Most important to lawyers practicing in the Louisiana Supreme Court is the Court’s April 6, 2020 order suspending its own deadlines. Under this order, any filings due between March 12, 2002 through May 1, 2020 will be deemed timely if filed no later than Monday, May 4, 2020. 

Following the Louisiana Supreme Court’s lead, all five courts of appeal have issued their own orders adopting the same suspension of deadlines, with a few tweaks to the date filings are due once the suspension is lifted. Here are links to those orders:

• First Circuit ( May 1 filing deadline)
• Second Circuit (May 7 filing deadline, except filing in expedited matter due May 1)
• Third Circuit (May 1 filing deadline)
• Fourth Circuit (May 4 filing deadline)
• Fifth Circuit (May 4 filing deadline)

Some of these deadlines may change, depending on the governor’s actions and the courts’ responses within the next few days. But as things stand now, a lot of stuff that’s been on hold during the COVID-19 emergency is going to be due next Friday or the following Monday.

p.s. One more wrinkle: In New Orleans, home of the Louisiana Supreme Court and Louisiana Fourth Circuit, the mayor has extended the stay-home order through May 15. While that order doesn’t address deadlines, it may affect the LASC’s and Fourth Circuit’s operations. To download a copy of that order, follow this link.

LASC encourages remote proceedings

Today, the Louisiana Supreme Court issued a supplemental order responding to the COVID-19 emergency. For trial lawyers, the highlight of today’s order is its decree that no civil or criminal jury trials are to begin in any Louisiana state court before June 30, 2020. For civil litigators, including appellate lawyers, today’s order marks a slight shift from allowing to encouraging proceedings by video conference, teleconference, or other remote means. “To the extent that proceedings can be conducted by remote conferencing, judges are encouraged to conduct all court matters.” Today’s order also encourages lawyers to cooperate in holding remote proceedings: “The consent for remote proceedings in civil matters required in Section 6 of this Court’s April 6, 2002 Order shall not be unreasonably withheld by any party, which shall be enforced by the trial judge” under La. Code Civ. P. art. 191 or other law.

For a copy of today’s order, follow this link. To read the Court’s press release about today’s order, follow this link. For a copy of the Court’s April 6, 2020 order, follow this link.

LASC orders issued April 6

Yesterday, the Louisiana Supreme Court issued a superseding order for trial-court proceedings, replacing its prior orders of March 16, 20, and 23. In essence, the order implements the governor’s executive orders responding to the COVID-19 emergency. Among other things, the order continues all jury trials that had been set for April 2020, to be rescheduled no earlier than May 4, allows in-person hearings for only certain emergency matters (as defined in the order), and allows courts to conduct other business remotely (e.g. teleconference, video conference). The order does not address the state’s appellate courts, which have been issuing their own orders responding to the COVID-19 emergency. To download a copy of this order, follow this link.

In a separate order, also issued yesterday, the Louisiana Supreme Court extended its own filing deadlines. All filings otherwise due from March 12, 2020 through Friday, May 1, 2020, will be deemed timely if filed no later than May 4, 2020. Parties unable to meet the May 4 deadline because of the COVID-19 emergency may move for extensions, “supported by appropriate documentation and argument.” (Translation: extensions will not be automatic.) To download a copy of this order, follow this link.

 

LASC orders La. courts to take precautions against COVID-19

Today the Louisiana Supreme Court issued an order to all Louisiana courts to take concrete steps toward reducing the risk of exposure to the coronavirus. To download a copy of today’s order, follow this link. Under today’s order, Louisiana courts must do the following things (among others):

• "take immediate measures to limit access to courtrooms and other spaces, with absolute minimum physical contact, to practice social distancing and limit court activity to only the essential functions ..."
• "follow all guidelines issued by the Center[s] for Disease Control, the President and the Governor ..."
• conduct all essential court functions by video and telephone conferencing when possible
• conduct essential criminal matters by video or telephone conferencing "with increased frequency to alleviate potential overcrowding of jails ..."

To read the rest of the order, follow this link.

LASC order continuing dates in other La. courts

Last Friday, March 20, I posted about the Louisiana Supreme Court’s order extending deadlines in its own cases. Today I caught up to a second order by the Louisiana Supreme Court on March 20. This order continues trials in all other Louisiana courts and partially supersedes the Court’s March 16 order. The March 20 order continues all civil and criminal jury trials set to begin between March 20 and April 13, “to be reset by local order no earlier than April 14, 2020.” The order continues all other civil trials set to begin during the same period, except without the April 14 deadline for resetting them. Several time-sensitive categories of civil cases are exempted from the continuance.

To download a copy of this order, follow this link.