Pot, Meet Kettle? Supreme Court Criticizes Judicial Internet Research

It has been shown both empirically and anecdotally that the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court have conducted their own internet research in order to decide cases. But now that Court has criticized a Maryland appeals court for doing the same thing.

Appellate Judges Argue Over Online Research

Along with ongoing issues regarding jurors researching cases online, a related question has been how appropriate it is for judges to do the same.

Online research by U.S. Supreme Court justices has been shown empirically and anecdotally, and there have been instances of lower court judges doing online research. Now, the judges of a federal circuit court have entered the controversy.

Judge Quits Blogging, Again; But It Still Can Be Done

Federal district court judge Richard G. Kopf has announced that he will stop writing his blog after being criticized for a controversial post: the second time that he was made such an announcement.

Jury's Still Out on Juror Internet Use

A recently-released report from the Federal Judicial Center says that in a survey of 494 federal trial judges (48 percent of all 1,021 sitting federal trial judges), only 33 of the judge (seven percent of respondents) reported that they were aware of instances of juror use of social media to communicate during trials or deliberations in their courts

Should a Judge Blog? And Tell the Supreme Court to Shut the F--- Up?

U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Kopf -- who I mentioned in my previous post on the availability of federal courts' audio recordings of their proceedings -- has gotten into a bit of hot water for a post on his personal blog criticizing the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.

Judicial Commission Considers Judge's "Like"

SEE COMMENTS FOR AN UPDATE TO THIS POST.

On Friday (Aug. 10) the Kansas Commission on Judicial Qualifications was slated to consider a complaint filed against Butler County District Judge Jan Satterfield over her "liking" a post on the Facebook page (removed, but cached here) of Butler County Sheriff Kelly Herzet's re-election campaign, according to the Augusta (Kan.) Gazette (AP version here).

This is one of only a handful of cases where judges have run into issues through their use of social media. But such situations are likely to become more common as such activity continues to grow.

Justices Use Internet "Extrinsic Evidence" in Big Cases

Two of the Supreme Court's recent major decisions provide vivid examples of my prior blog post about judges (and Supreme Court justices in particular) using "extrinsic evidence" -- materials other than what the lawyers present to them in briefs, trial, or argument -- to make judicial rulings.

Extrinsic Research: Yes, Judges Do It Too

(cross posted at the Citizen Media Law Project)
Several posts on this blog have discussed the issue of jurors conducting "extrinstic" research by looking up facts online to supplement the evidence that is presented them in court. Courts nationwide are struggling to figure out how to deal with this, from posters in jury rooms to penalizing jurors for conducting such research.

Court Disconnect: Judge Urges Jurors to Keep Off MySpace

One of the major problems with juror use of the Internet and social media -- and courts' attempts to stop it -- is the disconnect between judges and other court officials, who are generally older and less familiar with modern media tools and services, and jurors who are tech-savvy.

See No Evil: Study Says Judges Don't Find Jurors Using Social Media

cross posted at the Citizen Media Law Project)

The Federal Judicial Center has released a study which concludes that "detected social media use by jurors is infrequent, and that most judges have taken steps to ensure jurors do not use social media in the courtroom," and implies that juror use of the Internet and social media during trial is not a growing problem.
Alison Frankel of Thompson-Reuters is skeptical about this conclusion, and I agree with her.

More Media: I'm Interviewed on Social Media in Court

 

On Tuesday I joined Wichita (Kansas) Eagle Staff Writer for Interactive News Ron Sylvester to discuss Tweeting, blogging and use of other social media to report on courtroom proceedings in the latest Lawyer2Lawyer podcast. 

Using the Internet During Trial: What About the Judges?

(cross posted at the Citizen Media Law Project)
Over the past year, we've watched the courts struggle with Internet and social media use involving a variety of actors. We've seen jurors doing Internet research and using social media during trial, courtroom observers using portable recording devices, and supporters of a popular defendant bombarding a judge with emails. Recent developments from courts in New York and Ohio have brought a new courthouse player onto the scene: the judge.