Courts mull closures, risks amid pandemic

WASHINGTON — The nation’s federal courts began to grapple in earnest with the fallout from the rapidly spreading coronavirus Thursday, including the Supreme Court’s decision to close to the public “until further notice,” the closure of an immigration court in Seattle and the possibility that a San Francisco courtroom might have hosted an attorney who is presumed to have the highly contagious virus.

At the national level, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts organized a COVID-19 Task Force as a single point of contact within the judiciary to share information and guidance relating to the coronavirus outbreak.

That includes representatives from Federal Occupational Health, the General Services Administration, the Marshals Service and other federal partners, the AO said.

But individual courts can make their own decisions about how to respond based on their local situation. Those decisions must balance long-scheduled or legally required court hearings with the health of the judges, clerks, staff, lawyers, jurors and defendants who must come to the courthouse.

Those courts have coordinated with state and local health officials to obtain information, with guidance from the AO on human resources, budget and other operational issues, as well as continual updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In Washington, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit posted a reminder on its website that the CDC recommends avoiding public spaces to avoid spreading the virus — and that they provide live online streaming of oral arguments.