COVID-19 Updates & Resources

The Indianapolis Bar Association, in coordination with the Indiana State Bar Association, is monitoring the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, and is curating credible information and resources as they relate to the legal community.

Court & Legal Community Updates

If you have a pertinent update, please send details to Mary Kay Price at mprice@indybar.org.

• See Governor Holcomb's Executive Orders here.

• For a comprehensive listing of state-wide court closures, please click here.

• Orders on Administrative Rule 17 Petitions: A listing of all orders issued by the Indiana Supreme Court can be found here. These include orders for Marion and all surrounding counties.

• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana: 
  View the most recent General Order here (March 24).
  Previous General Orders:
  March 20, 2020
  March 18, 2020
  March 13, 2020
• United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Indiana: See the court's response to the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) here.
• The Indiana Supreme Court and Indiana Court of Appeals have issued an order that extends filing deadlines. See the order here.
• The Indiana Supreme Court issued several orders on March 31. These orders impact the ability to administer oaths remotely and the ability to sign wills and estate planning documents remotely, provide direction on critical family law matters, relax distance education limitations and extend the application deadline for the July bar exam. See more here.
• Indiana Supreme Court: Click here for an update from Chief Justice Loretta Rush from March 19. 
• Marion Superior and Circuit Courts: Hon. Alicia Gooden has provided updated contacts and information regarding both the Marion Superior and Marion Circuit Courts in light of the COVID-19 outbreak. See details here.
• Marion Superior Court: See a listing of emergency contacts by court here.
• Marion County Clerk's Office: See the emergency plan from the Clerk's Office here. See information on payments here. See the recent update webinar from the Clerk's office here, and additional resources from the office here.
• Marion County Clerk Waiving Bond Service Fee: see more here.
• Marion County Criminal Courts: Click here for updates from IndyBar Criminal Justice Section chair John Gallo regarding criminal courts.
• Low-Risk Non-Violent Inmate Release Assessment: The statewide effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 includes a joint letter from all three branches of government to local criminal justice leaders regarding the impact of COVID-19 on detention facilities. See the letter here.

IndyBar Updates
To ensure the health and well-being of IndyBar members and staff, IndyBar will postpone and reschedule all in-person meetings at least through April 10, 2020. CLE programs scheduled during that time will be presented online for distance education credit.

In addition, IndyBarHQ will be closed to members until at least April 10, 2020, with the option to reopen if the situation materially changes. As of March 17, IndyBar staff is working remotely. Staff can be reached by phone or email. View the directory here. 

If you need assistance from IndyBar, do not hesitate to contact IndyBar President Andy Campbell or IndyBar Executive Director Julie Armstrong.  

IndyBar Resources
The IndyBar is working continuously to gather resources and host programming to be of assistance to the legal community. If you have an idea you would like to share related to this effort, contact IndyBar Executive Director Julie Armstrong.

Special Events

• Indiana Bankruptcy Court Update and Q&A: Tuesday, April 7, 12:30 p.m. Register here.
• Marion Superior Court Weekly Update: Wednesday, April 8, 2:30 p.m. Register here.
   

Recorded programs:

• Marion Superior Court Weekly Update, April 2: View the recording here.
• Marion County Probate Court Update & Impact of Supreme Court Orders on the Estate Planning Practice, April 2: View the recording here.
• Title I of the CARES Act, April 1: View the recording here.
• Ethics from a Social Distance, March 30: View the recording here.
• State of Indiana and City of Indianapolis Response to COVID-19, March 27: View the recording here.
• Marion Superior Court COVID-19 Live Update, March 18: View the recording here.
• Marion Superior Court Weekly Update, March 25: View the recording here.
• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana COVID-19 Live Update, March 19: View the recording here.
• Family Court COVID-19 Live Update, March 20: View the recording here.
• Marion County Clerk's Office COVID-19 Live Update, March 23: View the recording here. Additional resources are available here.
• Free Webinar: COVID-19 Guidance for Employers & Individuals. Featuring Infectious Disease Physician Dr. Mark R. Bochan, MD, PhD, FIDSA; Amy Adolay, Krieg DeVault LLP; Scott Morrisson, Krieg DeVault LLP. View the recording here.
• Free Webinar: The Coronavirus Outbreak is a Referendum on Virtual Practice: How Quickly Can Your Law Firm Get Up to Speed? Featuring IndyBar Law Practice Management Consultant Jared Correia, Tony Paganelli of Paganelli Law Group and Josh Brown of Cohen Garelick & Glazier PC. View the recording here. 

Additional Resources

• Free Law Practice Management Consulting: IndyBar members have access to free one-on-one consulting with IndyBar Law Practice Management Consultant Jared Correia. Jared is ready to assist practitioners with a variety of issues surrounding the Coronavirus crisis, as well as daily practice management questions. Contact Jared here.
• Family Law Section Updates: Click here for updates from IndyBar Family Law Section chair Elisabeth Edwards regarding family law matters.

Local Resources & Information
If you have a resource to share, please contact Mary Kay Price, Director of Marketing & Communications.

• Click here to access the State of Indiana's Coronavirus page.
• Click here to see Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP's COVID-19 Resource Toolkit.
• Click here for a guide to virtual home visits for GALs from Kids' Voice of Indiana.
• Indy Chamber Rapid Response Hub: Pandemic-related resources and information for small business owners. 
• View the latest information from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development here.

Additional Resources & Information

• Technical questions on getting your remote office up and running? IndyBar vendor partner Proxurve Solutions is offering consultations for setting up remote access or general questions. Contact Proxurve at sales@proxurve.com or 317-664-7769, extension 1.
• Federal student loan payments suspended, interest waived during national emergency: See more here.
• U.S. Small Business Administration Disaster Loan Assistance: Marion County and Indiana are eligible for low-interest federal disaster loans for small businesses with substantial economic injury due to COVID-19. Apply here.
• Families First Coronavirus Act: On Friday, March 13, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act with bi-partisan support. Among other things, the bill, if enacted, would provide additional paid and unpaid leave to most employees of employers with fewer than 500 employees. The bill is expected to be taken up by the Senate early this week.  A summary of the leave-related provisions is linked here.
• Virtual Mindfulness Sessions: Click here for details.
• JLAP Wellness Resources
• CDC Corinavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) webpage
• Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy COVID-19 Podcasts and Webinars
• National Law Review Coronavirus and COVID-19 Updates for Employers
• JD Supra Coronavirus: An Employer's Action Guide
• Littler Coronavirus (COVID-19) Employer FAQs
• A Preliminary Connecticut Employer FAQ on COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

Considerations for Employers
Balancing the need to protect your employees and company can be challenging. Toss in the varying employment laws, and things can get even trickier. Here are a few FAQs curated from various resources, which are shared at the end of this article:

Can an employer restrict travel to all locations under a CDC travel advisory?
An employer may restrict business travel. Employers should continue to consult the CDC’s website: “Coronavirus Disease 2019 Information for Travel” for up-to-date travel notices concerning risk. The CDC advises that employers restrict all nonessential travel to areas with a Warning Level 3, and to exercise caution regarding travel to Warning Level 2 areas.

Can I restrict my employees from traveling on Spring Break?
No, employers may not restrict personal travel. But employers can ask where the employee has traveled, and if the employee has traveled to an area designated Level 3 by the CDC, you may ask the employee to self-isolate upon return.

Can I require employees to stay home if they are sick?
Yes. The challenge arises regarding whether the employee will be paid during that time, whether that time off is attributed to vacation or other type of paid time off. Each employer will have to find the right answer for itself. The CDC advises that you can require an employee to be fever-and-symptom-free for 24 hours. Consider a temporary suspension on your illness policy; yes, there may be an employee who will abuse this but a generous policy can potentially stop a serious outbreak within your company.

Can I require employees to wash their hands?
Yes, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act. And, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, employers have the obligation to provide a reasonably safe workplace. So, you should be encouraging employees to take such measures.

Can I ask employees to disclose if they have a compromised immune system or chronic health condition?
No. An inquiry asking an employee to disclose a compromised immune system or a chronic health condition is disability-related because the response is likely to disclose the existence of a disability. The ADA does not permit such an inquiry in the absence of objective evidence that pandemic symptoms will cause a direct threat. Such evidence is completely absent before a pandemic occurs.

What can I do if I suspect an employee has COVID-19?
You may ask if the employee has symptoms such as fever or a dry cough. You can also direct employees who have virus-like symptoms or who are at high risk for infection (they live in a house where someone else has in infection) to go home.