You are here

News & Announcements

Check this page, or the News and Announcements box on the homepage, for the latest official news and announcements released by the court. You can also access archived news and announcements from this page.

Wed, 2025-04-02

The Federal Court and the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Indiana Celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with

The Changing Face of America: The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana and the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Indiana are proud to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with a special event on Wednesday, May 7, 2025, at 2:00 pm. The hour-long program will be held in Courtroom 216 at the Birch Bayh Federal Building and United States Courthouse, 46 East Ohio Street, Indianapolis, Indiana.

2025 marks the 60th anniversary of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which heralded major changes in American immigration policy. Through a combination of presentation and panel conversation, three outstanding speakers will discuss the effects of the INA from historical, legal, and personal perspectives.

Dr. Melissa Borja is a core faculty member in the University of Michigan's Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies Program. She researches and teaches about religion, migration, race, ethnicity, and politics in the United States and the Pacific World, with special attention to how Asian American religious beliefs and practices have developed in the context of pluralism and the modern American state. Dr. Borja's book, Follow the New Way: American Refugee Resettlement Policy and Hmong Religious Change (Harvard University Press), draws on oral history and archival research to investigate the religious dimensions of American refugee policy. She earned a Ph.D. and M.Phil. in history from Columbia University, in addition to an M.A. in history from the University of Chicago and an AB in history from Harvard University.

Dr. Ellen Wu is an associate professor of history at Indiana University – Bloomington. Dr. Wu researches, teaches, and writes about race, migration, and belonging in United States history. Her first book, The Color of Success: Asian Americans and the Origins of the Model Minority (Princeton, 2014), tells of the astonishing makeover of Asians in the United States from the “yellow peril” to “model minorities” in the middle decades of the twentieth century. Dr. Wu is currently writing Overrepresented, forthcoming from Princeton University Press. This book places Asian Americans at the center of the history of racial justice to tell a new story about diversity, data, and democracy in the United States. She earned B.A. and B.S. degrees from Indiana University – Bloomington, an M.A. degree from University of California – Los Angeles, and a Ph.D. from University of Chicago.

Judge Lakshmi Reddy was elected to the Vigo Superior Court in 2014 and was reelected to the bench in 2020. A beneficiary of the INA of 1965, she was born in India and came to the United States with her parents when she was two years old. She graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in biology, and in 1997, she earned her J.D. from the Indiana University McKinney School of Law. After serving as an associate at law firms in Indianapolis and Terre Haute, she founded Reddy Law Firm in 2009, practicing civil, commercial, family, and probate law until her appointment to the bench. She also served as a law clerk to Indiana Supreme Court Justice Frank Sullivan Jr.

Attendees are invited to enjoy light refreshments following the event. A virtual option is available for those who cannot attend in person. One hour of Continuing Legal Education credit is pending.

The event is free and open to the public, but pre-registration is required. Please register at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/INA60th#/ to reserve a space and indicate whether you will attend in person or virtually. Those attending virtually will receive the link upon registration, and again the day before the program with instructions on how to connect via Zoom.

Wed, 2025-01-22

Indianapolis, Indiana – January 22, 2025:  The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana continues to receive reports of scammers posing as local law enforcement officials and calling individuals – often professionals such as attorneys and health care providers – to accuse them of allegedly failing to appear as an expert witness at a court hearing or trial.

Recipients of such calls are told they have been found in contempt of court and, if they fail to pay a fine, will be arrested. Using threats and scare tactics, the scammers then entice their victim to pay this "fine" with cash cards or other electronic payment. Making this scam even more nefarious, the scammers spoof government phone numbers and provide their victim with the names of real law enforcement officers, real court officials, and real judges. Even if the names are real, the "fine" is fake.

This is a scam. Real courts and real law enforcement officers will never call someone and demand a payment for any reason. If you receive such a call, hang up immediately.

Residents of the Southern District of Indiana who believe they have been the victim of such a scam are encouraged to report the incident to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Internet Crime Complaint Center ("IC3") at https://www.ic3.gov, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/#/. Additional information about this scam is available on the FTC's website.  

Here are some tips on things to remember and what to do if you are contacted by anyone claiming to be a law enforcement officer or court official:

  • Only scammers will call, text, or email demanding that you pay by cash, gift card, cryptocurrency, payment app, or a wire transfer service. No court official or law enforcement officer will ever make such a demand.
     
  • Real law enforcement and real court officials will never demand that you pay fines by phone.
     
  • Real law enforcement and real court officials will never call to say you’re going to be arrested (or threaten to arrest you if you hang up).
     
  • Do not divulge personal information or financial information to unknown callers, including those who claim to work for the government.
     
  • A fine will never be imposed until after an individual has appeared in court and been given the opportunity to explain a failure to appear. 
     
  • Report scams to the Internet Crime Complaint Center and the Federal Trade Commission.
Mon, 2024-11-18

Federal courts across the nation face a worsening shortage of Article III judges, resulting in countless Americans suffering delays in the resolution of their legal matters. The Southern District of Indiana is joining the push for Congress to pass the JUDGES Act, a bill that would add 66 district judgeships, two new circuit judgeships, and convert or extend certain existing temporary judgeships to improve access to justice and to meet increasing case filings in the federal courts. One of those additional district judgeships would be in the Southern District of Indiana, where the weighted caseload in the year ending June 30, 2024, ranked nineteenth in the United States and third in the Seventh Circuit. See the Press Release for full details. 

Tue, 2024-10-22

The Court has considered the recommendation of the Local Rules Advisory Committee that the revision of certain Local Rules of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana be adopted, and the Clerk issued a Public Notice on September 23, 2024, regarding the proposed amendments. The Court has considered the proposed amendments and the comments received.  Therefore, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2071, Rule 83 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and Rule 57 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana hereby gives public notice that the following amendments to the Local Rules of this Court are adopted, effective December 1, 2024.  Please see the Public Notice linked below for more details.

  Public Notice Re:  Amendments to Local Rules

Mon, 2024-06-10

Chief Judge Tanya Walton Pratt announced today that the judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana have selected Kristine Seufert to serve as Clerk of Court, effective October 7, 2024. Ms. Seufert will fill the vacancy created by the departure of current Clerk Roger A. G. Sharpe on October 4, 2024.  Please see full Press Release linked below.

  Press Release - Judges Select Attorney Kristine Seufert as New Clerk of Court

Tue, 2024-05-21

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2071, Rule 83 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and Rule 57 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana hereby gives public notice that the following amendments to the Local Rules of this Court are adopted, effective July 1, 2024.  Please click on the link below for details.

  Public Notice Re: Amendments to Local Rules

Mon, 2024-04-15

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2071(e) and Rule 83 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana hereby gives public notice of the following:  The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana has determined there is an immediate need to adopt new Local Civil Rule 5.1-2 – Actions Seeking Nationwide or Statewide Relief. The new rule as detailed in the link below is effective as of April 15, 2024.

  Public Notice Re:  Immediate Local Rule Amendment

Fri, 2024-03-22

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana (March 22, 2024): On Monday, April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will occur, and the path of totality will cross the Southern District of Indiana that afternoon. Therefore, by order of Chief Judge Tanya Walton Pratt, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, including the Bankruptcy Court and Probation Office for the Southern District of Indiana, will close at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time in Indianapolis, New Albany, and Terre Haute, and at 12:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time in Evansville, for the remainder of the day.

The courthouse buildings in all four divisions of the Southern District of Indiana will remain open and accessible to the public on that date, and the Clerk's Office will remain accessible for purposes of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6 for the limited purposes of drop box filing, email filing, and CM/ECF electronic filing.

Normal operations will resume on Tuesday, April 9, 2024.

Thu, 2024-02-29

A formal investiture ceremony celebrating the appointment of Crystal S. Wildeman as United States Magistrate Judge took place on Friday, February 23, 2024, in Evansville. Judge Wildeman fills the vacancy created by the elevation of the Honorable Matthew P. Brookman from magistrate judge to district judge of the Southern District of Indiana. Please see the Press Release for details. 

Tue, 2024-02-13

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana and the Indianapolis Bar Association are pleased to celebrate Women's History Month. Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush will present Amazing Grace: The Ascension of Hoosier Women in the Law, on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, at 3:00 pm. The hour-long program will be held in Courtroom 202 at the Birch Bayh Federal Building and United States Courthouse. A virtual option will be available for those who cannot attend in person. See the Press Release for full details.

Pages