Opinion
2:20-cv-1349 WBS DB P
03-08-2023
DAVID NATHANIEL ROBERTS, Plaintiff, v. LYNCH, et al., Defendants.
ORDER
DEBORAH BARNES, UNTIED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE.
Plaintiff is a state prisoner, proceeding without counsel. On February 14, 2023, the court referred the present action to the ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) Project for a postscreening settlement conference. (ECF No. 29.) In that order, parties were directed to file confidential settlement conference statements with the court once a settlement conference was scheduled. (Id. at 2.) The order also directed the parties to include certain information with these statements as well as directions for how to provide these statements to the court. (Id.)
Since the court's February 14, 2023 order, plaintiff has filed three settlement conference statements on the docket for this case. (See ECF Nos. 30-32.) A settlement conference has not yet been scheduled in this action. The court's order referring the case to the ADR Project only referred the case for a settlement conference; it did not schedule a settlement conference. (See ECF No. 29.) As such, plaintiff's settlement conference statements (ECF Nos. 30-32) are premature and not authorized. Further, parties are directed to send settlement conference statements directly to the settlement judge via the procedures described in the court's referral order.
In accordance with the above, the court will disregard plaintiff's settlement conference statements as prematurely filed. If plaintiff wishes to file a motion to strike these settlement conference statements, he may do so. Parties are directed to wait until a settlement conference is scheduled to submit confidential statements and to follow the directions included in the court's February 14, 2023 order (ECF No. 29) when doing so.
Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:
1. Plaintiff's Settlement Conference Statements (ECF Nos 30, 31, 32) are disregarded as premature; and
2. The Clerk of the Court is directed to include with this order a copy of the court's February 14, 2023 order (ECF No. 29) referring this case to the ADR Project.