Chief judge ordered to act within 60 days

June 5, 2008

It’s not every day the 4th Circuit tells a district court judge to get cracking, but it happened here, after the appeals court learned that almost two years had passed since the last action on a motion for relief from final judgment.

Convicted drug conspirator Clarence Hicks complained of the delay by U.S. District Chief Judge Benson Everett Legg in a mandamus petition filed with the 4th Circuit on May 16.

“Finding substantial delay below, we grant the mandamus petition,” the per curiam panel wrote last week. (On the panel were Judges Paul V. Niemeyer and M. Blane Michael, as well as Senior Judge Clyde H. Hamilton.)

The appeals court gave Legg — or rather, his court — 60 days to act on the Rule 60(b) motion.

Have any of you federal practitioners out there seen similar delays?

BARBARA GRZINCIC, Managing Editor, Law

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