The United States District Court for the District of Vermont has announced a proposed amendment to Local Criminal Rule 57.2, which concerns the retention of pretrial service reports. The court is considering this change to align its local rules with recent updates in Judiciary policy that now allow counsel to retain these reports.
According to the notice, “the purpose of the proposed revision is to update the court’s local rule concerning the retention of pretrial service reports to be consistent with recent Judiciary policy changes permitting counsel to retain the reports.” The court’s Criminal Law Sub Committee recommended this revision, and judges have voted in favor of allowing counsel to keep these documents, provided they are not re-disclosed.
The proposed amendment would take effect on April 20, 2026. The public is invited to comment on this proposal before it is adopted.
This action follows federal law under 28 U.S.C. § 2071(b) and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 83(a)(1), which require courts to provide notice and an opportunity for public input when considering changes to local rules.
