Newsom Confirmed for Eleventh Circuit Vacancy

The Senate yesterday, in a 66-31 vote, confirmed Birmingham appellate attorney Kevin Newsom to fill the Eleventh Circuit vacancy left by the Honorable Joel Dubina when he took senior status in 2013.

Prior to his confirmation, Newsom was a partner with Bradley Arant Boult Cummings in Birmingham, where he served as chair of the firm’s appellate group. He formerly served as Solicitor General of Alabama. He is the Fifth Trump nominee to be confirmed by the Senate, and the first on the Eleventh Circuit. Check out Senator Shelby’s floor speech for more background on our new judge.

Eleventh Circuit Amended Rules Go Into Effect Today With Minor Changes

Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, Atlanta

Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, Atlanta

Amendments go into effect today, August 1, 2017, for six of the Eleventh Circuit’s local rules.  The changes are minimal and, on the whole, positive for parties and practitioners alike.

  • 11th Cir. R. 22-3:  The use of the clerk’s form for filing “a second or successive habeas corpus petition or motion to vacate, set aside or correct sentence” is no longer required, but merely encouraged in some cases.
  • 11th Cir. R. 31-1(d):  In addition to jurisdictional questions on main appeals, the rule now also contemplates potential jurisdictional questions on cross-appeals, expressly providing for postponement of the due date of the appellee-cross-appellant’s brief until the court determines that the appeal should proceed.
  • 11th Cir. R. 42-2(e):  A motion to set aside a dismissal of a civil appeal for failure to file a brief or appendix must now only be accompanied by the missing document, not both as previously required.
  • 11th Cir. R. 46-1:  Incorporates some of the content from FRAP 46, IOP 3 regarding attorney admission fees, and replaces specific payment information with references to 11th Cir. R. 46-3 and the court’s website.
  • 11th Cir. R. 46-2: deletes the specific dollar amount required for bar membership renewal, instead referencing the court’s website.
  • 11th Cir. R. 46-4: deletes payment information, instead referencing the court’s website.

You can view the full text of the updated rules here [.pdf].  Give us a call if you have a federal appeal coming up–we’re experienced in navigating the numerous technicalities of the federal appellate rules.