Are rules made to be broken? What if they are outdated or inefficient? Some rules of procedure for the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas have not been amended in over a decade. Additionally, rules have informally changed due to the pandemic and need to be formally adopted.
“The main focus on pandemic-related issues is that we have done a lot more telephone and Zoom court sessions,” said Judge Robert A. Goering. “We’re realizing that has been helpful to the bar, and so if there are particular areas that our community feels could be helpful, we’re happy to consider updating rules.”
Goering is chair of the Standing Committee on Civil Procedure, comprising judges of the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas, who have been tasked with reviewing and proposing changes to the rules. Other judges include Judge Jennifer Branch, Judge Christian Jenkins, Judge Terry Nestor, Judge Robert Ruehlman, and Judge Nicole Sanders.
The plan is to post a copy of the proposed changes in the spring of 2022 and seek comments from the bar and community for 30 days thereafter. All comments will be considered before the rules are finalized and approved by the judges of the Common Pleas Court.
“This is a comprehensive review of all the local rules,” said Goering. “For example, one of the local rules referred to a superintendent of court rule that doesn’t exist anymore. There’s a real need to make technical changes, and that’s been our primary focus.”
The Committee hopes practitioners will also provide comments and constructure feedback to the proposed rules in 2022. In the meantime, the Committee is interested in any new rules that attorneys would like to see regarding changes the court has made due to the pandemic.
For example, would attorneys like to keep or expand the use of remote appearance via video conferencing? Are there specific rules that should be adopted regarding video conferencing? The Committee also welcomes comments and proposed revisions to other, non-pandemic-related local rules.
“Any input is good, and this is still in the initial stages,” said Goering. “Once we get through every rule, we’ll publish the proposals and ask for specific comments.”
Attorneys may submit any comments and suggestions to pdressing@cms.hamilton-co.org.
Compiled by the Standing Committee on Civil Procedure and the CBA