On December 1, 2018, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were amended (amendments available here). Rules 5, 23, 62, and 65.1 were amended.
Rule 5
- Service of a paper may be made on a registered electronic-filing user by filing it with the court’s electronic-filing system. (Service by e-mail, as before, is only permissible under Rule 5 if done with the person’s written consent.)
- Certificates of service are no longer required when filing papers with the court’s electronic-filing system. This is a nice change, as the court’s Notice of Electronic Filing lists who has been served and at what e-mail address. For papers that are not served through the electronic-filing system, a certificate of service is still required.
- Electronic filing is now required in all non-pro se cases (unless nonelectronic filing is allowed by the court for good cause or is allowed or required by local rule).
- A filing made through a person’s electronic-filing account and authorized by that person, together with the person’s name on a signature block, constitutes the person’s signature.
Rule 23
- Rule 23, dealing with class actions, has been amended with respect to notice requirements, settlement procedures, class-member objections, and appeals.
Rule 62
- Rule 62, dealing with stays of proceedings to enforce judgments, has been amended to provide that execution on a judgment and proceedings to enforce a judgment are stayed for 30 days after the judgment’s entry (unless the court orders otherwise or as provided in Rule 62(c) or (d)). Previously, the stay only lasted 14 days after entry of the judgment.
Rule 65.1
- Rule 65.1 has been amended to make clear that the rule applies to all security providers, not simply sureties.