Featured in Federal Judge Shortages Take Toll on Business Litigation on BNA.com.
Mark Sessions, a civil litigator with Strasburger & Price in San Antonio, told Bloomberg BNA that cases [in the Western District of Texas] are managed with the help of senior judges and those visiting from other areas.
"Vacancies in Texas have necessitated judges traveling to handle dockets in other cities and this takes time away from their principal dockets," said Sessions, who focuses on business and banking litigation. "Also, this extra travel is a burden on each of these judges, particularly given the travel distances often required in our state."
Sessions said the court always has to handle a significant criminal case load. Filings for criminal felony cases far outweigh those for civil cases in that jurisdiction.
Sessions said he can't point to any instances of delayed timelines, cut corners, or questionable outcomes due to pressure to clear a docket or move a case along. But he said he shares others' concerns about the funding and staffing of the judiciary.
Sessions spoke shortly after the conclusion of this year's American Bar Association annual meeting. Sessions, who serves on the Lawyers Conference of the Judicial Division, said the group met earlier this year with members of Congress and their aides to discuss the status of the federal judiciary.
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