Civil Court Cases Face Possible Delays Due to Government Shutdown

U.S. Justice Department lawyers from New York to San Francisco are asking judges to delay civil cases as the government partially shuts down, and in Manhattan already won a halt to litigation except one trial. The Justice Department made the requests yesterday in prominent cases including its bid to block the merger of US Airways Group Inc. and AMR Corp. in Washington and others including an antitrust suit in San Francisco pressing Bazaarevoice Inc. to sell assets. Federal attorneys are seeking delays in cases including the Depository Trust and Clearing Corp.’s suit against the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over rules for swaps data.