[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3650 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3650

  To allow United States courts to conduct business during emergency 
                  conditions, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 6, 2005

 Mr. Sensenbrenner (for himself, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr. 
   Berman, and Mr. Gohmert) introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To allow United States courts to conduct business during emergency 
                  conditions, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Judiciary 
Emergency Special Sessions Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. EMERGENCY AUTHORITY TO CONDUCT COURT PROCEEDINGS OUTSIDE THE 
              TERRITORIAL JURISDICTION OF THE COURT.

    (a) Circuit Courts.--Section 48 of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Each court of appeals may hold special sessions at any place 
within the United States outside the circuit as the nature of the 
business may require and upon such notice as the court orders, upon a 
finding by either the chief judge of the court of appeals (or, if the 
chief judge is unavailable, the most senior available active judge of 
the court of appeals) or the judicial council of the circuit that, 
because of emergency conditions, no location within the circuit is 
reasonably available where such special sessions could be held. The 
court may transact any business at a special session outside the 
circuit which it might transact at a regular session.
    ``(f) If a court of appeals issues an order exercising its 
authority under subsection (e), the court--
            ``(1) through the Administrative Office of the United 
        States Courts, shall--
                    ``(A) send notice of such order, including the 
                reasons for the issuance of such order, to the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    ``(B) not later than 180 days after the expiration 
                of such court order submit a brief report to the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives describing the impact of such order, 
                including--
                            ``(i) the reasons for the issuance of such 
                        order;
                            ``(ii) the duration of such order;
                            ``(iii) the impact of such order on 
                        litigants; and
                            ``(iv) the costs to the judiciary resulting 
                        from such order; and
            ``(2) shall provide reasonable notice to the United States 
        Marshals Service before the commencement of any special session 
        held pursuant to such order.''.
    (b) District Courts.--Section 141 of title 28, United States Code, 
is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(a)(1)'' before ``Special'';
            (2) by inserting ``(2)'' before ``Any''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b)(1) Special sessions of the district court may be held at such 
places within the United States outside the district as the nature of 
the business may require and upon such notice as the court orders, upon 
a finding by either the chief judge of the district court (or, if the 
chief judge is unavailable, the most senior available active judge of 
the district court) or the judicial council of the circuit that, 
because of emergency conditions, no location within the district is 
reasonably available where such special sessions could be held.
    ``(2) Pursuant to this subsection, any business which may be 
transacted at a regular session of a district court may be transacted 
at a special session conducted outside the district, except that a 
criminal trial may not be conducted at a special session outside the 
State in which the crime has been committed unless the defendant 
consents to such a criminal trial.
    ``(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in any case in 
which special sessions are conducted pursuant to this section, the 
district court may summon jurors--
            ``(A) in civil proceedings, from any part of the district 
        in which the court ordinarily conducts business or the district 
        in which it is holding a special session; and
            ``(B) in criminal trials, from any part of the district in 
        which the crime has been committed and, if the defendant so 
        consents, from any district in which the court is conducting 
        business pursuant to this section.
    ``(4) If a district court issues an order exercising its authority 
under paragraph (1), the court--
            ``(A) through the Administrative Office of the United 
        States Courts, shall--
                    ``(i) send notice of such order, including the 
                reasons for the issuance of such order, to the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    ``(ii) not later than 180 days after the expiration 
                of such court order submit a brief report to the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives describing the impact of such order, 
                including--
                            ``(I) the reasons for the issuance of such 
                        order;
                            ``(II) the duration of such order;
                            ``(III) the impact of such order on 
                        litigants; and
                            ``(IV) the costs to the judiciary resulting 
                        from such order; and
            ``(B) shall provide reasonable notice to the United States 
        Marshals Service before the commencement of any special session 
        held pursuant to such order.''.
    (c) Bankruptcy Courts.--Section 152(c) of title 28, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(1)'' after ``(c)'';
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2)(A) Bankruptcy judges may hold court at such places within the 
United States outside the judicial district as the nature of the 
business of the court may require, and upon such notice as the court 
orders, upon a finding by either the chief judge of the bankruptcy 
court (or, if the chief judge is unavailable, the most senior available 
bankruptcy judge) or by the judicial council of the circuit that, 
because of emergency conditions, no location within the district is 
reasonably available where the bankruptcy judges could hold court.
    ``(B) Bankruptcy judges may transact any business at special 
sessions of court held outside the district pursuant to this paragraph 
that might be transacted at a regular session.
    ``(C) If a bankruptcy court issues an order exercising its 
authority under subparagraph (A), the court--
            ``(i) through the Administrative Office of the United 
        States Courts, shall--
                    ``(I) send notice of such order, including the 
                reasons for the issuance of such order, to the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    ``(II) not later than 180 days after the expiration 
                of such court order submit a brief report to the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives describing the impact of such order, 
                including--
                            ``(aa) the reasons for the issuance of such 
                        order;
                            ``(bb) the duration of such order;
                            ``(cc) the impact of such order on 
                        litigants; and
                            ``(dd) the costs to the judiciary resulting 
                        from such order; and
            ``(ii) shall provide reasonable notice to the United States 
        Marshals Service before the commencement of any special session 
        held pursuant to such order.''.
    (d) United States Magistrate Judges.--Section 636 of title 28, 
United States Code, is amended in subsection (a) by striking 
``territorial jurisdiction prescribed by his appointment--'' and 
inserting ``district in which sessions are held by the court that 
appointed the magistrate judge, at other places where that court may 
function, and elsewhere as authorized by law--''.
                                 <all>