Federal Judicial Conference Moves to Curb Judge Shopping

The Federal Judicial Conference announced today that it's "strengthen[ing] the policy governing random case assignment, limiting the ability to litigants to effectively choose judges in certain cases by where they file a lawsuit."

The move is designed to curb federal judge shopping. That's when litigants strategically file suit in a one-judge courthouse based on their (usually correct) predictions about how the judge will rule on hot-button issues and whether the judge will issue a nationwide injunction.

Under the new policy, "judges would be assigned through a district-wide random selection process." This means that plaintiffs who file in a single-judge courthouse (like Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk's court in Amarillo, Texas) won't be assured of getting that judge; instead, they might get any other judge in the district.

In announcing the policy, Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr., the secretary of the Conference, said, "The random case-assignment policy deters judge-shopping and the assignment of cases based on the perceived merits or abilities of a particular judge. It promotes the impartiality of proceedings and bolsters public confidence in the federal Judiciary."