Opinion
3:22-cv-00365-ART-CLB
10-18-2022
ORDER TO FILE CASE MANAGEMENT REPORT
Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16, United States Magistrate Judge Carla Baldwin concludes that a Rule 16 Case Management Report will assist the parties, counsel, and the Court in managing and overseeing discovery in this matter. Upon receipt of joint report, the Court will determine whether a case management conference should be set to assist in managing discovery.
Therefore, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:
A. Meet and Confer
The parties shall meet and confer on items required to be included in the Joint Case Management Report.
B. Joint Case Management Report
After the meet and confer, the parties shall file a Joint Case Management Report by no later than Friday, November 18, 2022. The Case Management Report shall not exceed fifteen (15) pages and shall not include any attached exhibits.
However, if any party fails to participate in preparing the Joint Case Management Report, the non-offending party shall detail the party's effort to get the offending party to participate in drafting the report. The non-offending party shall still file the report. The offending party may be subject to sanctions, including monetary sanctions to compensate the non-offending party's time and effort incurred in seeking compliance with this order.
C. Contents of Joint Case Management Report
The Joint Case Management Report shall include the following information in separately numbered paragraphs as designated below:
1. A short statement of the nature of the case (three pages or less), including a description of each claim and defense;
2. The jurisdictional bases for the case, citing specific jurisdictional statutes. If jurisdiction is based on diversity, the citizenship of each party shall be identified and the amount in controversy must be stated;
3. Whether any party expects to add additional parties to the case or otherwise amend the pleadings;
4. Whether there are any pending motions, including a brief description of those motions;
5. Whether this case is related to any other case pending before this court or any other court, including a bankruptcy court, and if so, provide a brief description of the status of those case(s);
6. A complete and detailed statement related to discovery, which addresses the following issues:
a) The date the Rule 26(f) initial disclosures were provided, or will be provided, by each party;
b) A brief statement regarding, what discovery requests have been served by any party, who the requests were served upon, and the due dates for responses to those requests;
c) Whether the parties anticipate the need for a protective order relating to the discovery of information relating to a trade secret or other confidential research, development, or commercial information;
d) Any issues or proposals relating to the timing, sequencing, phasing or scheduling of discovery;
e) Whether the parties anticipate the need to take discovery outside of the
District of Nevada or the United States and, if so, a description of the proposed discovery; and,
f) A summary of the number of depositions each party anticipates taking, information related to the anticipated location of those depositions, and whether any party anticipates video and/or sound recording of depositions.
7. A brief statement regarding the types of ESI expected in the case, where the ESI is located, a statement of any agreements reached by the parties related to ESI on the issues listed above, and any outstanding disagreements between the parties related to ESI.
8. In the event the Court has not already approved a discovery plan and scheduling order, the parties shall include proposed firm dates for each of the following pursuant to Local Rule 26-1:
a) A deadline for the completion of discovery;
b) A deadline for amending the pleadings and adding parties;
c) Dates for complete disclosure of expert testimony;
d) A deadline for the filing of dispositive; and,
e) A date by which the parties will file the joint pretrial order.
The parties shall state whether the dates proposed in this paragraph are within the deadlines specified in LR 26-1(f). If so, then the parties' report shall state, “THE DEADLINES SUBMITTED HEREIN ARE IN COMPLIANCE WITH LR 26-1(b).” If longer deadlines are sought, the parties' report shall state “SPECIAL SCHEDULING REVIEW REQUESTED.” If the parties request special scheduling review of the LR 26-1(b) deadlines, the parties shall include a statement of the reasons why longer or different time periods should apply to the case. If the parties disagree as to the LR 26-1(b) deadlines, a statement of each party's position on each point of dispute should be provided.
9. Whether a jury trial has been requested, whether the request for a jury trial is contested (if the request is contested, set forth reasons), and an estimated length for trial.
10. A statement as to the possibility of settlement and when the parties desire a court sponsored settlement conference, i.e., before further discovery, after discovery, after dispositive motions, etc.
11. Whether the parties intend to proceed before the magistrate judge. Presently, when a civil trial is set before the district judges, any criminal trial set that conflicts with the civil trial will take priority, even if the civil trial was set first. Continuances of civil trials under these circumstances may no longer be entertained, absent good cause, but the civil trial may instead trail from day to day or week to week until the completion of either the criminal case or the older civil case. The parties are advised that they are free to withhold consent or decline magistrate jurisdiction without adverse substantive consequences.
A form to be used for consent to proceed before the Magistrate Judge may be found on the Court's website, www.nvd.uscourts.gov/Forms.aspx (AO 85, Notice of Availability of a U.S. Magistrate Judge). Consent forms should NOT be electronically filed. Upon consent of the parties, the form shall be sent directly to clerk's office for processing.
12. Whether either party requests bifurcation or phasing of trial or has any other suggestion for shortening or expediting discovery, pre-trial motions or trial.
13. Whether either party requests that a case management conference be set in the case.
The parties are reminded that the filing of a dispositive motion does not stay a case in federal court, nor does it excuse the parties with proceeding with their discovery obligations as required by the Local Rules and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Failure to follow the Local Rules and comply with discovery obligations without first obtaining an order from the Court either delaying discovery requirements, staying discovery or staying the entire case may result in sanctions.
Should counsel or a party fail to comply with the directions as set forth above, an ex parte hearing may be held and contempt sanctions, including monetary sanctions, dismissal, default, or other appropriate judgment, may be imposed and/or ordered.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
ORDER
CARLA BALDWIN, MAGISTRATE JUDGE
I. CONFORMITY WITH RULES
Parties shall follow the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the District of Nevada's local rules and general orders, except as superseded by this standing order. Failure to comply with these rules and orders may be grounds for monetary sanctions, dismissal, entry of judgment, or other appropriate sanctions.
II. HEARINGS
A. Scheduling
Pursuant to Local Rule 78-1, motions may be considered with or without a hearing. A party may request a hearing by following the procedure provided by the rule. If Judge Baldwin orders a hearing, her courtroom deputy, Lisa Mann, will generally contact the parties to schedule the hearing at a convenient time to all parties. The parties are strongly encouraged to respond to such contacts as soon as possible in order allow the hearing to be scheduled in a timely fashion. If the parties fail to respond to such communications within 48 hours, the court will schedule the hearing at a time convenient to the court.
B. Opportunities for Less-Experienced Attorneys
Judge Baldwin encourages litigants to permit more junior members of the litigation team to present oral argument and gain courtroom experience. Thus, as a supplement to the rule requesting oral argument, a party should note in the filing that the requested argument or hearing would be handled by a more junior lawyer. In those instances where Judge Baldwin may be inclined to rule on the papers, a representation that a younger lawyer would be responsible for presenting argument will weigh in favor of holding a hearing.
C. Transcripts
All hearings, case management, status and pretrial conferences are audio recorded; court reporters are usually not provided. Forms necessary to request a copy of either the audio recording (on CD) or a transcription of the audio recording, or the court reporter's transcript, if applicable, are available on the District of Nevada's website at: https://www.nvd.uscourts.gov/court-information/forms/
III. COURTESY COPIES
Paper courtesy copies are not to be submitted to Judge Baldwin's Chambers unless expressly requested.
IV. CASE MANAGEMENT
A. Case Management Reports and Conferences
After an answer or other responsive document has been filed, Judge Baldwin will generally enter an order requiring the parties to file an initial Joint Case Management Report (“JCMR”). This order will detail the requirements for the JCMR. The parties are required to meet and confer to draft the JCMR, as explained in the order, and must strictly adhere to the requirements for the JCMR outlined in the order.
After receipt of the JCMR, Judge Baldwin may set an initial case management conference. If Judge Baldwin determines such a conference is necessary, an order setting the case management conference will be issued. Lead counsel for each party must attend the case management conference, as more fully described in the court management conference order.
In some cases, Judge Baldwin may order subsequent case management conferences to take place after the initial case management conference. If Judge Baldwin orders an additional case management conference, each party must file a separate case management conference report no later than 5 court days before the next case management conference. The subsequent case management report must be no longer than 10 type-written, double-spaced pages and must address the following three topics:
1. What discovery has been completed since the last case management conference;
2. What discovery has been served, but not yet responded to, since the last case management conference; and
3. A brief statement of any discovery issues which the parties have been unable to resolve through a meet and confer conference that have arisen, a brief description of the meet and confer efforts taken to resolve the issue, and the requested resolution of the issue by each party.
No exhibits should be attached to any subsequent case management report other than the relevant excerpts of the discovery requests and responses, privilege logs, or deposition testimony, which are the subject of a discovery issue outlined in the case management report.
B. Amended Pleadings
If a party files a motion seeking leave to amend its pleading, the party must comply with the requirements of Local Rule 15-1. In addition, the moving party must also concurrently file a redlined or highlighted version comparing the amended pleading, attached as an exhibit to the motion, to the prior operative pleading.
C. E-Filed Documents and Exhibits
In accordance with LR IC 2-2 and LR IA 10-1, counsel is directed to file all documents in a searchable PDF format, except for exhibits or attachments that cannot be imaged in a searchable format.
Moreover, pursuant to LC IC 2-2(a)(3), exhibits or attachments may not be filed as part of the base document in CM/ECF. Rather, each exhibit must be attached as a separate file.
D. Motions to File Under Seal
Parties are reminded that court proceedings are presumptively public. Any request to file a document under seal must comply with LR IA 10-5.
V. DISCOVERY
A. Motions to Dismiss and Discovery
The filing of a motion to dismiss does not stay discovery. Rather, the parties are required to comply with the rules of discovery as required by the Local Rules and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. See LR 26-1 et. seq.; Fed. R. Civ. Pro. 26 et. seq. If a party believes that discovery should be stayed pending a decision on the motion to dismiss, the party is required to file a motion to stay that directly addresses the factors articulated in Kor Media Group, LLC v. Green, 294 F.R.D. 579 (D. Nev. 2013) (citing Tradebay, LLC v. eBay, Inc., 278 F.R.D. 597 (D. Nev. 2011)). Parties are advised that a stay of discovery will not be granted merely because a motion to dismiss was filed. Rather, the moving party must establish that a stay is proper under the circumstances.
B. Informal Discovery Dispute Procedure
Pursuant to LR 1-1(b)(2), the court requires the parties to follow the following informal discovery dispute procedure. No discovery motion may be filed until this procedure has been followed and such briefing is ordered by the court. Discovery disputes include any dispute between the party related to the timing of discovery or extensions of time related to the completion of any discovery item.
If a discovery dispute arises the parties must first meet and confer to try to resolve their dispute in compliance with LR IA 1-3(f). Lead counsel for each party shall meet and confer in person, videoconference, or telephone. A mere exchange of letters or e-mails does not satisfy the meet and confer requirement.
If the parties are unable to resolve their dispute informally after a good-faith effort, the parties must do the following:
First, the party seeking the requested discovery, or seeking to avoid the requested discovery, must file a motion entitled “Motion Regarding Discovery Dispute.” This motion is limited to 5 pages (12-point font or greater, margins of no less than one inch) in length. No exhibits may be attached to the motion with two exceptions: (1) a declaration detailing the meet and confer efforts undertaken to resolve the dispute; and (2) if the disagreement concerns specific discovery that a party has propounded, such as interrogatories, requests for production of documents, or answers or objections to such discovery, the moving party must reproduce the question(s)/request(s) and the response(s) in full in a single exhibit. The motion must contain the following issues in separate sections:
1. A statement of the unresolved issue(s);
2. A summary of the moving party's position (with citations to supporting facts and legal authority); and
3. The moving party's requested compromise or resolution of the issue.
No later than 2 court days after the initial motion is filed, the opposing party shall file a response to the motion. The response is also limited to 5 pages (12-point font or greater, margins of no less than one inch) in length. No exhibits may be attached to the response with two exceptions: (1) if the responding party disagrees with the information contained in the moving party's declaration related to the meet and confer efforts, the responding party may file a declaration detailing the meet and confer efforts undertaken to resolve the dispute; and (2) if the moving party failed to provide the discovery requests at issue, or if the responding party disagrees with the discovery items provided by the moving party, the responding party may provide a single exhibit providing the specific discovery request(s) that are at issue. The response must contain the following issues in separate sections:
1. A statement of the unresolved issue(s);
2. A summary of the moving party's position (with citations to supporting facts and legal authority); and
3. The moving party's requested compromise or resolution of the issue.
This process allows a side-by-side, stand-alone analysis of each disputed issue. Upon receipt, the court will review the motion and response and determine whether formal briefing or future proceedings are necessary.
C. Emergency Discovery Disputes
In emergencies during discovery events such as depositions, any party may, after exhausting good faith attempts to resolve disputed issues, seek judicial intervention pursuant to Civil Local Rule 37-1(b) by contacting Judge Baldwin through her courtroom deputy, Lisa Mann, or by calling Judge Baldwin's chambers directly. However, before contacting the court, the parties must first send a short email describing the nature of the dispute to clbchambers@nvd.uscourts.gov. If Judge Baldwin is unavailable, the deposition shall proceed with objections noted for the record.
IT IS SO ORDERED.