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News & Announcements: August, 2019

Jury Duty Scam

Citizens in the Western District of New York  may receive various forms of false communication (scams) by phone or email. A recent scam involves jury forms with official-looking bar codes sent by email that ask for personal information such as  date of birth, mother's maiden name, etc. For more information about jury scams, click here.
If you have received a phone call or email asking you to provide personal information and/or send payment to avoid arrest or other penalty, it is a scam.

The Court will NOT do any of the following:
1. The Court will NOT send or accept jury forms by email. The Court's official forms do not require personal information such as your mother's maiden name.
2. Serve a warrant by e-mail or fax. Valid warrants will always be served in person by a U.S. Marshal or other law enforcement officer.
3. Call, e-mail, or send a fax to tell you a warrant has been issued.
4. Demand the payment of money in lieu of being arrested.
5. Demand verification of personal information via email or phone call, such as  bank account information.

Scammers, claiming to be a officer or attorney of the U.S. government, have been contacting citizens and demanding payment of money or verification of personal information in order for the subject of the scam to avoid arrest. Scammers have also been sending official-looking jury forms via email to citizens that ask for personal information (phishing). Calls and emails such as these are scams. Such emails may contain Trojan horses or viruses.

What Can You Do?

If you believe that you have been the victim of fraud or have received a scam phone call, phishing e-mail, or fax, contact your local police or sheriff department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation  or the United States Marshals Service.
If you have any concerns about a communication that purports to be from the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York , contact us at 716-551-1721
 
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.

Tue, 08/20/2019

Please join us for a free training to learn how trauma may impact your case, regardless of your practice area. Very often, as attorneys, we don’t understand how trauma may impact our cases regarding our clients’ abilities to collaborate with us...

Mon, 08/12/2019

The United States District Court for the Western District of New York is pleased to announce Mark W. Pedersen is the district's newest magistrate judge.  Full details can be found here...

Mon, 08/05/2019

New mediators added to the Court’s Mediator Panel:

On behalf of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, Chief Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. is pleased to announce the addition of the following mediators...

Mon, 08/05/2019

The Pro Se Assistance Program will be closed in both cities from Monday, August 6th through the second week of September.