Federal Courthouse Closure Extended

Federal courthouses in the Central District of California will remain closed through June 1, Clerk of Court Kiry K. Gray announced Monday.

Originally, federal courthouses in Pasadena, Los Angeles, Santa Ana and Riverside — which are closed to the public except for hearings on criminal duty matters — were set to stay shuttered through May 1.

The Central District of California is comprised of the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. It serves approximately 19.6 million people – nearly half the state’s population.

In civil cases, no hearings will go forward through June 1 except for emergency time-sensitive matters, such as requests for temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions, as ordered by the assigned judge.

Any hearings on emergency civil matters will proceed by telephone only. In-person meetings of grand juries will remain suspended through June 1.

The court’s computer system is available 24/7 for electronic filing of documents. Litigants who cannot electronically file their documents, and attorneys who are required to manually file documents pursuant to local rules, must mail their filings to the clerk of the court.

In criminal cases, criminal duty matters will go forward in the Roybal Federal Building and US Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles only. All criminal document duty will be handled by each division in the normal course of business.

Telephonic hearings on other criminal matters may proceed as directed by the assigned judge.

All matters before the Bankruptcy Court will proceed telephonically, Gray said.

Naturalization ceremonies that had been scheduled this month and next are canceled.

In Pasadena, the Richard H. Chambers Federal Courthouse is located at 125 South Grand Avenue in West Pasadena.