Opinion
4:20-CV-7-SA-JMV 4:20-CV-30-SA-JMV
10-29-2021
MICHAEL AMOS, et al. PLAINTIFFS v. NATHAN BURL CAIN, et al. DEFENDANTS DARRAN LANG, et al. PLAINTIFFS v. JEWORSKI MALLET, et al. DEFENDANTS
[PROPOSED] CLASS CERTIFICATION SCHEDULING ORDER PRELIMINARY STATEMENT
I. INITIAL DISCLOSURE UNDER FED. R. CIV. P. 26(a)(1)
The parties will exchange initial disclosures regarding class certification issues pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 26 on or prior to__.
II. RESPONSES TO PLEADINGS AND PENDING MOTIONS; AMENDMENTS TO PLEADINGS
The deadline for Defendants to respond to plaintiffs' complaints is . The deadline for defendants to respond to Brymon Hamp's motion for TRO in the Lang case (4:20cv30 [71]) is .
The deadline to file any motions to amend the pleadings is (This must be a date to expire approx. 30 days after this scheduling order is entered.) This date will be the deadline for motions to amend the pleadings whether the case is in the class certification stage or merits stage. The same deadline will apply to motions to join parties (except as to those parties, if any, joined as a consequence of the grant, if any, of class certification).
III. CLASS CERTIFICATION DISCOVERY AND SCOPE
Discovery prior to class certification must be sufficient to permit the Court to determine whether the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 are satisfied. Until the issue of class certification is resolved, counsel must give priority to discovery directed to the class certification issue. Discovery on the merits shall occur after the decision on class certification with the understanding that some discovery on class certification may in some instances overlap with merits issues. In such instances, discovery on these merits issues may predate the class certification decision. Once class certification is decided, the Court will schedule a second case management conference within 30 days of the issuance of an order ruling on class certification, or as soon as practical thereafter. At the conference, the parties will, among other things, propose a new discovery order, addressing additional merits discovery needed and necessary, related deadlines and discuss a schedule for trying the case.
IV. DISCOVERY PLAN AND DEADLINES as concerns the class certification stage. (Note: matters appearing in this section in parenthesis are suggestions by the Court, and they may or may not ultimately control in the scheduling order the Court ultimately adopts.)
The parties are ordered to complete all discovery related to class certification as follows:
1. Due to the nature of this case, discovery procedure will differ from the requirements of Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 30 and 33 in the following respects only: The parties agree to the following limitations on Interrogatories, Requests for Production, Requests for Admissions and depositions: party depositions per side; non-party depositions-excluding experts- per side; requests for production per side; interrogatories per side; and requests for production per side. (Be specific as to number and application of each per party(ies) or side. The Court, as you can see, suggests per side and there is deemed to be only a single plaintiff's side and single defense side since the cases are consolidated.)
2. Expert witnesses for class certification, if any, shall be disclosed, in compliance with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26, by for plaintiffs (side) and by for defendants (side).
3. Discovery must be completed by (approximately 1 - 1.5 months after defendants' expert designation deadline).
4. Daubert motions challenging certification experts must be filed by (approximately 3 weeks after the discovery deadline).
5. Plaintiffs' (side) motion for class certification and memorandum shall be filed by (approx. 1 - 1.5 months after Daubert deadline) and shall not exceed 30 pages; the response (by defendants'side) is due 14 days thereafter and will not exceed 40
pages; and any reply will be due 7 days later and not exceed 10 pages.
V. ESI
The parties CERTIFY that they have discussed, in particular, the proportionality of discovery, the burden and expense associated with discovery, and the discovery of electronically stored information (ESI). The parties do or do not anticipate a need for an ESI addendum. If the parties do anticipate the same, they shall submit to the Court a jointly prepared proposed ESI addendum no later than (10 days from the date of entry of the scheduling order).
VI. CLASS CERTIFICATION HEARING
The Class Certification hearing, if any, will be set by separate notice.
IT IS SO ORDERED