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Supreme Court Cordially Invited You To Sue In Federal Court: Hope You Don't Mind Waiting, The, Evan F. Fitts

Missouri Law Review

Congestion in the federal judiciary is so prevalent that it has become an afterthought. From the outset of their introductory Federal Civil Procedure course, most law students learn that any attorney who brings an action in a federal court better be prepared to wait. A recent report by the Federal Judicial Center indicated that the average time between filing and adjudication of issues in federal district courts was approximately two years. It can reasonably be asserted that this length of time is directly proportional to the amount of cases on the federal docket. Therefore, any step to reduce the caseload …