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Supreme Court postponing oral arguments, closing building to public due to COVID-19

Posted at 9:55 AM, Mar 16, 2020
and last updated 2020-03-16 11:12:28-04

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Supreme Court of the United States is postponing the oral arguments scheduled for its March session, including those regarding subpoenas for President Donald Trump’s financial records.

SCOTUS said Monday that it made the decision to postpone the arguments set for March 23-25 and March 30-April 1 out of an abundance of caution due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The court said will examine the options for rescheduling those cases “in due course” in light of the developing circumstances.

“The court’s postponement of argument sessions in light of public health concerns is not unprecedented,” wrote SCOTUS in a press release. “The court postponed scheduled arguments for October 1918 in response to the Spanish flu epidemic. The court also shortened its argument calendars in August 1793 and August 1798 in response to yellow fever outbreaks.”

The court will hold its regularly scheduled conference on Friday, but some justices may participate remotely by phone. The court will issue its regularly scheduled order list next Monday, March 23 at 9:30 a.m.

The SCOTUS building will continue to be open for official business, and filing deadlines are not extended under Rule 30.1. However, the building will remain closed to the public until further notice.

The court is expanding remote working capabilities to reduce the number of employees in the building, consistent with public health guidance.