As the former leader of the Indiana Court of Appeals, Judge Margret Robb knows what it takes to be the chief. Now, she’s sharing her experience with other judicial leaders as president of the Council of Chief Judges of the State Courts of Appeal.
Rising up above the town of Brookville sits the historic Franklin County courthouse, nestled into a hollow encircled by rolling hills. On most days, Franklin Circuit Judge J. Steven Cox can be found sitting on the bench inside that courthouse. But he also may be found sitting behind an easel, painting it.
The Scott Circuit judge will return to the bench after his monthlong stretch of temporarily being unable to perform his duties.
Indiana Chief Justice Loretta Rush announced she will present the 2019 State of the Judiciary next week to Gov. Eric Holcomb and a joint session of the Indiana General Assembly.
Fort Wayne native Michael T. Douglass has been named a magistrate judge in the Allen Superior Court Civil Division, the courts announced in a statement. Douglass will join the court Jan. 22.
The Indiana Supreme Court is seeking public comment on the candidates who have applied to fill an upcoming vacancy in Lake Superior Court. Comments must be submitted via email to [email protected] by noon CST on Jan. 14.
With the start of the 116th Congress, Indiana’s two remaining federal judicial nominees have stalled and the vacancies in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana continue. However, Indiana’s senior senator expressed confidence they will come back to Capitol Hill.
The Supreme Court began its term with the tumultuous confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, followed by a studied avoidance of drama on the high court bench — especially anything that would divide the five conservatives and four liberals. But when they gather in private on Friday to consider new cases for arguments in April and into next term, the justices will confront a raft of high-profile appeals.
Indiana Lawyer’s top story of 2018 began inside an Indianapolis bar in the cool early-morning hours of Thursday, March 15. Attorney General Curtis Hill had had a few drinks. A few too many, several witnesses would later claim.
The Indiana Supreme Court is seeking comment on proposed changes to trial rules that govern what happens if a trial judge fails to timely rule on a motion and that would remove Supreme Court involvement in the appointment of a special judge. The court’s Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure is considering amendments to Indiana Trial Rules 53.1 and 53.2.
The Supreme Court on Monday avoided a high-profile case by rejecting appeals from Kansas and Louisiana in their effort to strip Medicaid money from Planned Parenthood, over the dissenting votes of three justices. The court’s order reflected a split among its conservative justices and an accusation from Justice Clarence Thomas that his colleagues seemed to be ducking the case for political reasons.
Allen County Magistrate Jennifer DeGroote has been appointed by Gov. Eric Holcomb to fill an upcoming vacancy on the Allen Superior Court. DeGroote will succeed Judge Stanley A. Levine, who will retire Dec. 31.
The Indiana Department of Correction has again lost a suit in which it argues to keep secret the drugs it would use in a lethal injection. The judge in the case extraordinarily outlined how the DOC, the governor’s office, and the Indiana General Assembly appeared to directly undermine her order that the department disclose the drugs it might use in a potential execution.
An insurance company is under no obligation to defend or indemnify a southern Indiana father whose son shot and killed a man on their property, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled, reversing a trial court order denying summary judgment for the insurer.
A man who opened fire in a busy Indianapolis intersection after he claimed he was trying to make a citizen’s arrest of a suspected iPad thief was improperly convicted of one of two charges that may have constituted double jeopardy, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.
After President Donald Trump announced Kavanaugh’s nomination in July, the Judicial Crisis Network declared that it was prepared to spend as much as $10 million or more in a pro-Kavanaugh advertising campaign. It set up confirmkavanaugh.com, calling Kavanaugh “a person of impeccable character, extraordinary qualifications, independence, and fairness.”
The Indiana Supreme Court denied transfer in 29 cases it reviewed last week, but split on whether to hear three of those cases.
Indiana Innovation Institute executive vice president of strategy, partnerships and outreach Julie Griffith of Carmel has been appointed as the newest member to the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission.
For the second time in little more than one month, the Indiana Court of Appeals has addressed the issue of the Marion Superior Court ordering civil commitments by the judge summarily approving commitment orders signed by commissioners or magistrates without signing the orders. But unlike a prior ruling, the COA on Wednesday found that issue waived, though a dissenting judge argued litigants cannot waive the issue of a judge’s failure to perform a statutory duty.
Two Republican state lawmakers have released draft legislation that would address Indiana’s lack of a hate crimes law by giving judges the ability to consider bias as an aggravating factor when considering prison sentences.