Welcome to the Bar Association of the Third Federal Circuit (3CBA) web site, the Association for lawyers who practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Federal Circuit. With hundreds of members, including 98 Founding Members and 18 Founding Firms, the 3CBA’s mission is to work with the Court to:
We hope that you will join us and become an active member of our growing association. Click here for information about how to join the 3CBA. Since our formation in 2007, the 3CBA has presented state of the art appellate programs in every corner of the Circuit – from Pennsylvania to the Virgin Islands – covering topics such as electronic filing, appellate motions practice, brief writing, and effective oral argument. Most recently, we are providing CLE presentations for the 2017 Third Circuit Judicial Conference on "Professional Ethics in Appellate Advocacy" and "What Attorneys Hope Judges Know and Vice Versa." We have also developed the Third Circuit Practice Guide and publish "On Appeal," a periodic newsletter keeping our members informed of recent developments. Please feel free to contact any of our officers or Board of Governors, who welcome your input. We look forward to working with you, to getting to know you, and to your active involvement in our Association.
The Third Circuit Bar Association’s Committee on Court Rules and Procedures (Rules Committee) focuses on the Court of Appeals’ local rules of appellate procedure, internal operating procedures, and other Circuit-wide rules, procedures, forms, and standing orders. The Committee analyzes proposed changes to these rules and procedures, and drafts suggested comments on those proposals for submission to the Clerk by the Association’s Board of Governors. The Committee also attempts to make proactive suggestions from the perspective of appellate practitioners for improvement in the Court’s rules and procedures. Additionally, the Committee works with the Programs and Publications Committees and others to prepare materials, including newsletter articles, CLE presentations, and the 3CBA's Third Circuit Practice Guide, to educate our members about the Court’s rules and procedures and changes in them.
The Committee welcomes practitioners to join the Committee or to participate as needed in its work. Please contact Carlo D. Marchioli or Howard J. Bashman if you are interested in helping.
The Rules Committee has prepared comments submitted by the 3CBA on proposed Circuit local rules and procedures covering a wide range of topics, including:
Our comments have been well-received and often largely adopted by the Court.
We are pleased to publish a guide to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. The guide provides straightforward answers to some of the more common questions we hear from lawyers whose practices may not take them to the Third Circuit on a regular basis. We are in the process of creating a new updated edition and will post it here when it is completed.
Download the Guide