I-4-6-10.Clerical Procedures for Incoming Remand Orders — Court Case Preparation and Review Branch
Last Update: 6/26/23 (Transmittal I-4-96)
When a Court Case Preparation and Review Branch (CCPRB) receives a court order, the court legal assistant will read the entire order to verify that it is a remand order, as opposed to a reversal or an affirmation. The court legal assistant will also verify that the order is signed by a judge or, if signed by a magistrate judge, that it is a valid final order (in which case the file will show that both parties have agreed in writing to allow the magistrate judge to conduct the proceedings).
NOTE:
Reports and recommendations that are signed only by magistrate judges and that have not been expressly adopted by the court are not valid remand orders. Do not take any action on such documents until an order has been signed by a judge.
A. Review Order for Time Limit or Processing Delay
The court legal assistant will determine if the court imposed a time limit or if the remand has been delayed (see Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law manual I-4-6-5 B) and flag the case accordingly. These cases always require expedited handling at all stages of processing.
B. Enter Information into the Appeals Review Processing System
The court legal assistant will enter the remand into the Appeals Review Processing System (ARPS). If the court has imposed a time limit for the Office of Appellate Operations to take action on the remand, the court legal assistant will also enter the time limit information into ARPS.
C. Check Case for Completeness
The court legal assistant will review the remand order to determine if there are additional documents, such as magistrate judge reports or new evidence submitted to the court, that must be obtained. In the case of circuit court remands, both the circuit and district court remand orders must be in the file. If the court legal assistant determines that the case is not ready to be worked because some document(s) is not in the file, CCPRB staff must request the missing document from the Office of the General Counsel office that handled the case. If the remand is time-limited the court legal assistant must not delay the case to request the missing evidence.
D. Assign the Case to an Analyst
As soon as a remanded case is ready to work, the court legal assistant will prepare the case for the branch chief to assign it to an analyst.