General Information:  Click on a topic below for more information.

General Matters   Media Relations   Communications with Chambers  
Facilities   Court Hours and Promptness
  

General Matters

The Standards for Professional Conduct Within the Seventh Federal Judicial Circuit are hereby adopted as the governing standards for matters pending before Chief Judge Herndon. Pro se litigants are likewise expected to abide by these instructions. The standards are published in the Practitioner’s Handbook published by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Internet access to the standards may be obtained at the following URL:

www.ca7.uscourts.gov/conduct.pdf

When presenting a TRO and the need for an immediate hearing, upon being advised by the Clerk’s office that Chief Judge Herndon is assigned the case or is to cover the TRO for another judge, contact the Courtroom Deputy, Sandy Pannier,  to make arrangements for such hearing. If the Courtroom Deputy is engaged in the courtroom, please contact Senior Chambers Counsel, Katie Hoffman.

Chief Judge Herndon will hear oral argument on motions in exceptional circumstances only upon his determination of such need. Parties who wish oral argument should make the request in writing and state the reason the exception exists in the motion at issue. If Chief Judge Herndon directs that oral argument should proceed, parties will be advised by written or telephone notice and further advised if a time limit on argument has been set. Time limits will be strictly enforced.

When parties or attorneys feel compelled to cite other federal trial courts as authority for a particular proposition of law, despite the complete lack of precedential authority thereof, the name of the trial judge whose order is cited should be included with the citation. Furthermore, the exact purpose in citing the case should be included since it is presumed that it is not cited as binding precedent on this Court. If a subsequent Seventh Circuit opinion, for example, relies upon the case for a reason pertinent to the action at bar, this Court should be so advised.

Unfortunately, counsel too often cite a particular case simply because specific language contained therein seems to be an apt quote for the intended argument regardless of its relationship to the actual holding in the case. Briefs of counsel are closely scrutinized by this chambers for integrity of reliance upon authority.

It is Chief Judge Herndon's practice to adhere to the Local Rules, with rare exceptions. Those occasions will generally be related to complex litigation. There is not an opt out procedure available to litigants. 

Parties are invited to write Chief Judge Herndon, with a copy to opposing counsel,  to ask the status of any motion or other issue under consideration in excess of sixty days (i.e. from the date of the last pleading relative thereto). Acceptance of this offer will help this chambers determine if a matter has gone unnoticed.

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Media Relations

Chief Judge Herndon recognizes the right of the media to report the various proceedings in his court. Likewise, he acknowledges that everyone, regardless of position, has certain job duties to perform and the desire to pursue them along a path of least resistance. Consequently, his chambers will cooperate in every possible respect. If interested in the schedule for a particular case, media should call the Courtroom Deputy Sandy Pannier or the chambers counsel assigned to the case. Other inquiries should be directed to the chambers counsel or Chief Judge Herndon.

If there is a procedure that this chambers can follow which will assist the media in the execution of its duties generally, please discuss your needs with chambers counsel or Chief Judge Herndon. However, with respect to requests for copies from files, media should make that request directly to the Clerk’s office, where billing arrangements can be made. If the file is physically in chambers, preventing the Clerk’s office from making the needed copies, let us know, and we will convey the file or order requested to their office.

The media should expect this chambers and every member of it to comply with Canon 3(A)(6):

A judge should avoid public comment on the merits of a pending or impending action, requiring similar restraint by court personnel subject to the judge’s direction and control. This proscription does not extend to public statements made in the course of the judge’s official duties, to the explanation of court procedures, or to a scholarly presentation made for purposes of legal education.

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Communications with Chambers

Chief Judge Herndon employs three chambers counsel (a/k/a law clerks) rather than the traditional staff of a judicial secretary and two counsel. Therefore, when the need arises to communicate with chambers, contact the chambers counsel assigned to the case or, if it is a scheduling matter, Courtroom Deputy Sandy Pannier. If you do not know the counsel assigned to your case, call the chambers main line, 618-482-9077, and ask to be connected with the chambers counsel assigned to the case.

Direct communication with chambers should only be for urgent matters wherein the usual filing process will cause undue delay. Likewise, such contact shall only be with the knowledge and consent of, or in concert with, opposing counsel or pro se litigants. Every litigant and all attorneys are expected to respect the rules against inappropriate ex parte communications with all members of chambers. The typical effort to violate this rule occurs when persons attempt to influence chambers counsel in some action, usually by inquiring about the chambers counsel’s opinion regarding how she or he expects the Court to rule on a pending matter while simultaneously advocating a position. Appropriate communications with chambers counsel include scheduling matters (in the absence of the Courtroom Deputy and with consent of opposing counsel or parties) and the need for information regarding chambers-specific procedures and policies not clearly established herein. Chief Judge Herndon requires adherence to the Local Rules except in rare cases, for which the Judge will directly advise the parties. Therefore, questions about Local Rules and procedures covered by such rules should be addressed by reading the Rules and not directed to chambers counsel.

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Facilities

Chief Judge Herndon's Courtroom 7 is equipped with state of the art evidence presentation equipment. Each counsel table is equipped with monitors and cables for accessing the evidence presentation system with counsel's own laptop computer. The media cart includes the facility to utilize a personal computer, document camera, video playback and audio cassette playback. A touch screen monitor on the media cart allows attorneys to highlight what is being displayed by the document camera with a touch of a finger and in multiple colors. The witness stand includes a touch screen monitor so that the record can be supplemented with a permanent representation of that which was highlighted. Monitors distributed throughout the jury box insure that each juror has the ability to view the evidence being presented. A large plasma screen is available to allow spectators in the gallery to view the evidence or as a supplement to any of the other monitors. 

Utilization of this equipment, which is strongly encouraged by the Chief Judge, requires coordination on the part of counsel. Any evidence or presentations, such as PowerPoint, generated through counsel's pc will require advance viewing by opposing counsel, with the Court's ruling on admissibility before something is displayed to the jury. The Court has use of a master control panel to prevent something from being shown to the jury which should not be viewed by them, but failure to work out such problems in advance will only defeat one of the primary purposes of such equipment. Anyone wishing to be tutored in the use of this equipment should contact chambers staff to arrange a convenient time to go over the equipment. The vendor for the equipment is DOAR and familiarity with other DOAR-installed equipment will be helpful in the operation of the Court's system. 

With the advent of this equipment, the timeworn custom of passing an exhibit to the jury will be disallowed except in the rarest of circumstances. Jury instructions will be displayed on all courtroom monitors as the Judge reads the instructions in order to aid in the jury's understanding of the instructions.

Counsel shall insure that parties and witnesses do not mingle with potential jurors or trial jurors. Prior to trial, the venire panel will be located in the jury assembly room and instructed to report directly to the jury deliberation room adjacent to the courtroom once they have been selected for trial. However, mingling is always a potential when the jurors arrive at and leave the courthouse or go to the smoking area.

Unless otherwise invited, counsel and parties shall not enter the chambers area for the purpose of utilizing the Court’s telephone, copier or computer. Chief Judge Herndon does not employ a secretary and chambers staff will not perform secretarial functions for counsel or parties. There is a counsel conference room, equipped with a color copier, on the first floor of the courthouse. 

Counsel should advise clients and witnesses to avoid contact with the jury and to avoid lingering in the area outside of the courtroom since the entrance to the jury room is just outside the courtroom entrance.

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Court Hours and Promptness

Promptness is expected of everyone involved in the proceedings before the Court. The Courtroom Deputy Sandy Pannier should be advised of any delay to be occasioned by one’s tardiness.

During trial days, Court will be in session from 9:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., with morning and afternoon breaks and an hour and a quarter for lunch. Judge Herndon tries to break between noon and 1:15 p.m. for lunch. Counsel’s diligence in keeping track of the time will greatly assist the Court in avoiding an interruption in the testimony at illogical points. However, counsel should not unilaterally stop at a point not reasonably close to the above times and announce he or she is "ready to break now." The Court will determine when to take a break after learning from counsel the anticipated time of examination remaining. Fridays are reserved for miscellaneous criminal matters and, unless otherwise advised, trials will not be scheduled on that day.

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