Case Management Conference Order; Civil Trial Order - Jury; Civil Trial Order - Non Jury; Criminal Trial Order

=== Case Management Conference Order ===

1UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO EASTERN DIVISION Plaintiff(s), vs. Defendant(s). CASE NO. JUDGE DONALD C. NUGENT NOTICE: CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE SCHEDULING OF CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE All counsel and/or parties will take notice that the above-entitled action has been set for a Case Management Conference (CMC) on _________at _______ a.m before Judge Donald C. Nugent, Room 15A, Carl B. Stokes U.S. Court House, 801W. Superior Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44113. This CMC will be done by telephone. Counsel for all parties are instructed to get together on one line and call into the Court at 216-357-7160. PRESENCE OF LEAD COUNSEL Lead counsel must participate in the CMC.. If the participation of lead counsel will constitute an undue hardship, a written motion to make other arrangements and excuse the participation of lead counsel must be filed no later than seven (7) days prior to the CMC. TRACK ASSIGNMENT This case is subject to the provisions of Differentiated Case Management (DCM ) as set forth in the Local Rules of the Northern District of Ohio. This Court will evaluate this case in accordance with LR 16.2(a)(1) and assign it to one of the case management tracks. Each of the tracks (expedited, standard, complex, mass tort and administrative) has its own set of guidelines and time lines governing discovery practice, motion practice and trial. CONSENT TO JURISDICTION OF MAGISTRATE JUDGE A Magistrate Judge has been assigned to assist in this case. The parties are encouraged to discuss and consider consenting to the jurisdiction of the Magistrate Judge. PREPARATION FOR CMC BY COUNSEL Except in government collection cases and actions by unrepresented prisoners, the parties shall meet prior to the CMC to discuss the case and prepare a proposed discovery plan pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f). The Court places the burden of arranging this meeting on counsel for Plaintiff(s) if originally filed with this Court or, on counsel for Defendant(s) if removed. The parties shall, at or within 10 days after the meeting and without awaiting a discovery request, provide the basic information to the other parties specified by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1) (initial disclosures), Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2) (disclosure of expert testimony) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(3) (pretrial disclosures) shall also apply in this case. As part of the planning meeting, counsel must discuss and include in their discovery plan the timing and method for complying with the requirements of Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(5)(A). 2 Counsel must also determine whether there will be discovery of electronically stored information (ESI)[E-discovery]. If counsel anticipate any E-discovery, they must decide on a method for conducting such discovery or they must agree to abide by the default standard set forth in Appendix K to the Local Civil Rules. A Report of Parties’ Planning Meeting under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f) and Local Rule 16.3(b), (Parties shall use the attached Form) shall be filed with the Court at least three (3) working days before the CMC. Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(d), a party may not seek formal discovery from any source before the parties have met and conferred. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, initial disclosures, discovery depositions, interrogatories, requests for documents, requests for admission, answers and responses thereto shall not be filed with the Clerk’s office, except that discovery materials may be filed as evidence in support of a motion or for use at trial. Plaintiff(s) shall provide defendant(s) with a written demand to include a description and monetary breakdown of the damages claimed no later than one week prior to the date of the CMC. Defendant(s) shall respond with an offer no later than the date of the CMC. It is the responsibility of counsel for the plaintiff(s) to verify that a copy of this Order has been received by counsel for the defendant(s) or, if no counsel has entered an appearance for defendant(s), has been received by defendant(s). Please Note, effective January 1, 2006, ALL attorneys who practice before this Court are REQUIRED to file electronically pursuant to Local Civil Rule 5.1(c). Further, any attorney desiring to practice in a case before this Court, whose name has not appeared on an initial pleading or motion, shall enter a written notice of appearance. 3 OTHER DIRECTIVES Parties shall submit a courtesy copy of all dispositive motions, oppositions and replies, along with all supporting material to chambers. No party may file a motion for summary judgment prior to close of discovery without express leave of Court. All summary judgment arguments shall be made in a single motion. Parties may not file multiple summary judgment motions without express leave of court. The Court will not accept ex parte telephone calls to Chambers regarding substantive issues in pending cases. The Court speaks through its docket. While it may be appropriate to call Chambers regarding routine, non-substantive matters (such as requests for the dial in information for upcoming status conference, etc.), it is not appropriate for counsel to call Chambers ex parte for guidance or clarification regarding substantive matters, including matters relating to existing case management deadlines, requests to file briefing, and/or inquiries regarding the status of pending motions. All questions regarding substantive matters in pending cases must be filed as a motion on the public docket with the following exception-- If a dispute arises during a deposition that requires this Court’s immediate assistance, the parties may call Chambers for assistance, but must do so jointly. RESOLUTION PRIOR TO CMC In the event that this case is resolved prior to the CMC, counsel should submit a jointly signed stipulation of settlement or dismissal, or otherwise notify the Court that the same is forthcoming. IT IS SO ORDERED. Dated: ____________________________ DONALD C. NUGENT United States District Judge 4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO EASTERN DIVISION Plaintiff, v. Defendant. CASE NO. JUDGE DONALD C. NUGENT REPORT OF PARTIES' PLANNING MEETING UNDER FED. R. CIV.P. 26(f) AND LOCAL RULE 16.3(b 1. Pursuant to FED. R. CIV. P. 26(f) and LR 16.3(b), a meeting was held on , and was attended by: Counsel for Plaintiff(s) Counsel for Plaintiff(s) Counsel for Defendant(s) Counsel for Defendant(s) 2. The parties: have exchanged the pre-discovery disclosures required by FED. R. CIV. P. 26(a)(1) and the Court's prior order. will exchange such disclosures by ; 3. The parties recommend the following track: Expedited Standard Complex Administrative Mass Tort 1 4. This case is suitable for one or more of the following Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms: Early Neutral Evaluation Mediation Arbitration Summary Jury Trial Summary Bench Trial Case not suitable for ADR 5. The parties do/ do not consent to the jurisdiction of the United States Magistrate Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c). 6. Recommended Discovery Plan: (a) Describe the subjects on which discovery is to be sought and the nature and extent of discovery. (b) State any discovery disputes or challenges anticipated by either party: __________________________________________________________________ (c ) State any issues, including each parties’ views and proposals on claims of privilege or protection as trial-preparation materials, including the timing and method for complying with Rule 26(b)(5)(A) and – if the parties agree on a procedure – whether the parties will seek to include that agreement in an order under Federal Rule of Evidence 502: _____________________________________________________________ 2 __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ (d) The parties (indicate one): agree that there will be no discovery of electronically-stored information; or have agreed to a method for conducting discovery of electronically-stored information; or have agreed to follow the default standard for discovery of electronically- stored information (Appendix K to Northern District Ohio Local Rules) 3 (e) Non- Expert Discovery cut-off date: Plaintiff’s (or party with the burden of proof on an issue) expert report due date: (f) Defendant’s (or party without the burden of proof on an issue) due date: (g) Expert Discovery cut-off date: 7. Recommended dispositive motion date: 8. Recommended cut-off date for amending the pleadings and/or adding additional parties: ___________________________________________________________________- 9. Recommended date for a Status Hearing: 10. Other matters for the attention of the Court: Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Attorney for Defendant(s) Attorney for Defendant(s) 4

=== Civil Trial Order - Jury ===

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO EASTERN DIVISION Plaintiff, v. Defendants. JUDGE DONALD C. NUGENT CASE NO. CIVIL JURY TRIAL ORDER The above-titled case is scheduled for trial on at 8:30 a.m. in Courtroom 15A, or as soon thereafter as reached. A Final Pretrial Conference will be scheduled upon request of any party at any time convenient to all parties. Pursuant to Local Rule 16.3(e), the parties and lead counsel of record must be present at the Final Pretrial Conference. Lead counsel of record shall submit a status report five (5) days prior to the Final Pretrial Conference.1 Duty of Counsel Pursuant to this Trial Order, it is the duty of counsel to confer with each other frequently in order to prepare the case for trial. It will be necessary to confer in person on occasion. If an 1 Parties are instructed to comply with Rule 6 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure when computing any period of time prescribed in this Order. attorney is not complying with the requirements of this Trial Order, or is failing to cooperate with opposing counsel, opposing counsel shall immediately bring such matter to the Court’s attention by written notification. Such disputes will not delay the trial of this case. The Court will not hesitate to impose sanctions sua sponte. All counsel are required to be familiar with the Local Rules of this Court. Trial Briefs Each party is required to file a trial brief with the Court no later than five (5) days prior to the scheduled trial date. One (1) copy of each party’s trial brief shall be filed with the Court. A trial brief shall include: (a) a statement of the facts; (b) a discussion of the controlling law; (c) a list of proposed witnesses along with a brief description of the subject matter of the testimony of each witness; (d) an index of all proposed exhibits containing a brief description of each exhibit; (e) a discussion of any evidentiary issues likely to arise at trial; (f) any proposed voir dire questions; and, (g) proposed jury instructions. A witness not listed in the trial brief shall not testify at trial except under extraordinary circumstances. This rule applies to lay witnesses as well as to expert witnesses. An exhibit not listed in the trial brief shall not be introduced at trial, absent a showing of good cause. Counsel are required to exchange trial briefs no later than five (5) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Proposed Voir Dire Questions Pursuant to Local Rule 47.3, the Court shall conduct the initial examination of all 2 prospective jurors touching upon their qualifications to serve as jurors in the pending proceeding. Proposed voir dire questions included in the trial brief may be included in the Court’s examination, subject to the Court’s discretion. In all trials, counsel for the plaintiff and counsel for the defendant each may be allowed such period of time, as approved by the Court, to conduct voir dire examinations of prospective jurors. In cases involving more than one plaintiff and/or more than one defendant, the time for voir dire shall be divided by counsel for the parties, and additional time shall not be allowed, except where otherwise permitted by the Court. The jurors shall be examined collectively. All proposed voir dire questions must be relevant to the facts and issues involved in the particular case. Parties may discuss the voir dire process with the Court and suggest a format that would be agreeable among all parties and the Court. Proposed Jury Instructions Counsel for the parties are required to confer with one another in person with respect to proposed jury instructions, with a view to reaching an agreement on instructions to be requested. The instructions agreed upon by all counsel shall be identified. Disputed instructions shall also be identified, along with separate citations to legal authority for each instruction. No proposed jury instruction will be considered by the Court unless it has been submitted in compliance with these provisions, except that requests for instructions that could not reasonably have been anticipated may be submitted at least twenty-four (24) hours before final argument. Counsel shall also provide the agreed-upon jury instructions to the Court on a cd rom, or by email. The files must be formatted to be readable by an IBM computer equipped with WordPerfect X3. When submitting a cd rom to the Court, to avoid accidental erasure, counsel are 3 advised to alert the security guards and avoid placing the cd rom in the x-ray machine. If submitted by email, the files should be sent to [email protected], unless otherwise indicated by chambers. Exhibits One (1) copy of each exhibit shall be furnished to the Court no later than two (2) days before the scheduled trial date. There is no need to file the exhibits with the Clerk of Court. Rather, exhibits may be delivered directly to the Judge’s chambers. The original exhibits should be retained by counsel for use at trial. Counsel shall exchange copies of all exhibits and exhibit indexes no later than two (2) days before the scheduled trial date. Exhibits shall be marked before trial with exhibit stickers, which are available from the Clerk’s office upon request. The plaintiff shall mark exhibits with numbers and the defendant shall mark exhibits with letters. Both sides are to indicate the case number on the bottom portion of the exhibit sticker. If there are multiple parties, the parties last name should precede the number or letter (e.g., “McGinty-1" or “Briggs-A”). If the parties have a joint exhibit, it shall be marked as “Jt. Ex . 1" or “ Jt. Ex. 2" etc. If the defendant has more than twenty-six (26) exhibits, double letters shall be used (e.g., AA, BB, CC, etc.). When a multi-page exhibit is used, each page of the exhibit must be separately numbered. For example, if plaintiff’s exhibit one is a three-page document, the first page should be marked “1-1”, the second page should be marked “1-2”, and the third page should be marked “1-3”. The Court recommends that counsel place all exhibits in three-ring looseleaf binders, with appropriately marked divider tabs. A table of contents for each binder must be included. 4 Stipulations of Fact Counsel for the parties shall confer with one another in person in order to prepare written stipulations as to all uncontested facts to be presented to the jury. Said stipulations shall be filed with the Court no later than ten (10) days prior to the scheduled trial date. The Court will not allow direct or cross examination of any witness with respect to facts which are uncontested and facts which could have been stipulated. Joint Statement of Disputed Facts Counsel for the parties shall confer with one another in person to prepare a joint statement listing all disputed issues of fact which are to be submitted to the jury. Such statement shall be filed with the Court no later than five (5) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Deposition Testimony (Video Tape or Written Transcript) When depositions (video tape or written transcript) are intended to be used as evidence at trial, counsel proposing to use such deposition testimony shall notify opposing counsel at least five (5) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Any objections to the deposition testimony must be filed in writing with the Court at least four (4) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Counsel proposing to use said deposition testimony shall file a reply brief within two (2) days thereafter or indicate agreement to delete the portions to which there is objection. If it is a video tape deposition, the Court must be provided with a complete written transcript of the video tape deposition. The Court will not allow the use of deposition testimony at trial unless counsel has complied with all of the above procedures. 5 Remote Testimony If a party intends to use the Court’s remote testimony technology to allow testimony from a witness who is unable to attend Court proceedings in person, the party seeking to offer the witness’ testimony shall obtain prior approval of the Court, and shall contact the Court’s technology advisors no later than ten days prior to trial to allow the technology advisor sufficient time to schedule and test the proposed remote access location and equipment. The current contact person for the technology department is David Zendlo, and he can be reached at 216-357-7053, or by email at [email protected] . Remote testimony is not generally an acceptable substitute for presenting a live witness. It is not available to obtain testimony from witnesses who will be merely inconvenienced by having to appear in person, or because a party merely hopes to minimize their own cost of litigation, and should not be sought for those reasons. If, however, a witness would otherwise be unavailable to testify in person, permission may be sought from the Court and may be granted if the request is justified by sufficient cause. Courtroom Technology Any party that wishes to familiarize themselves with the presentation equipment and other technology available for use in the courtroom prior to trial, should contact the Courtroom Deputy at 216-357-7160 no later than one week before trial to schedule a time to visit the courtroom. If the party will require technological assistance with any of the equipment, they should also contact the Court’s technology advisors to ensure that someone will be available during the scheduled time to assist with the set-up and use of any equipment, or any other technological issues that may arise. 6 The current contact person for the technology department is David Zendlo, and he can be reached at 216-357-7053, or by email at [email protected] . Motions Any pre-trial motion, such as a motion in limine, the moving party believes requires the Court’s attention prior to the commencement of trial, shall be filed in writing and served upon opposing counsel at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled trial date. The nonmoving party shall respond, if desired, at least three (3) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Failure to comply with this requirement may impair the Court’s ability to thoroughly analyze such motion before the commencement of trial. Continuances No party shall be granted a continuance of a trial or hearing without a written motion from the party or counsel stating the reason for the continuance, endorsed in writing by all parties and lead counsel of record. The Court will not consider any motion for a continuance due to a conflict of trial assignment dates unless a copy of the conflicting assignment is attached thereto. The motion shall be filed within fifteen (15) days of counsel becoming aware of the conflict and not less than thirty (30) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Settlement The parties shall notify the Court at the earliest possible time if a settlement is reached in the case. 7 Trial Order Counsel are expected to comply with this Trial Order. In order to accomplish this, the Court will assume that all counsel have read and familiarized themselves with this Trial Order and with the Local Rules of this Court. Trial Conduct To prevent unnecessary delay and to ensure all counsel are able to fully participate in all stages of the trial, counsel are to remain available and in the proximity of the courtroom during jury deliberations. If counsel needs to leave the immediate area, they must notify the courtroom deputy. IT IS SO ORDERED. DATE: _________________ /s/ Donald C. Nugent DONALD C. NUGENT United States District Judge 8

=== Civil Trial Order - Non Jury ===

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO EASTERN DIVISION Plaintiff, v. Defendant. JUDGE DONALD C. NUGENT CASE NO. CIVIL TRIAL ORDER (Non-Jury) The above-titled case is scheduled for trial on_____________ at , or as soon thereafter as reached. A Final Pretrial Conference will be scheduled upon request of any party at any time convenient to all parties. Pursuant to Local Rule 16.3(e), the parties and lead counsel of record must be present at the Final Pretrial Conference. Lead counsel of record shall submit a status report five (5) days prior to the Final Pretrial Conference. 1 Duty of Counsel Pursuant to this Trial Order, it is the duty of counsel to confer with each other frequently in order to prepare the case for trial. It will be necessary to confer in person on occasion. If an attorney is not complying with the requirements of this Trial Order, or is failing to cooperate with opposing counsel, opposing counsel shall immediately bring such matter to the Court’s attention by written notification. Such disputes will not delay the trial of this case. The Court will not hesitate to impose sanctions sua sponte. 1 Parties are instructed to comply with Rule 6 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure when computing any period of time prescribed in this Order. All counsel are required to be familiar with the Local Rules of this Court. Trial Briefs Each party is required to file a trial brief with the Court no later than ten (10) days prior to the scheduled trial date. One (1) copy of each party’s trial brief shall be filed with the Court. A trial brief shall include: (a) a statement of the facts; (b) a discussion of the controlling law; (c) a list of proposed witnesses along with a brief description of the subject matter of the testimony of each witness; (d) an index of all proposed exhibits containing a brief description of each exhibit; and (e) a discussion of any evidentiary issues likely to arise at trial. A witness not listed in the trial brief shall not testify except under extraordinary circumstances. This rule applies to lay witnesses as well as to expert witnesses. An exhibit not listed in the trial brief shall not be introduced at trial, absent a showing of good cause. Counsel are required to exchange trial briefs no later than five (5) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Exhibits One (1) copy of each exhibit shall be furnished to the Court no later than two (2) days prior to the scheduled trial date. There is no need to file the exhibits with the Clerk of Court. Rather, exhibits may be delivered directly to the Judge’s chambers. The original exhibits should be retained by counsel for use at trial. Counsel shall exchange copies of all exhibits and exhibit indexes no later than two (2) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Exhibits shall be marked before trial with exhibit stickers, which are available from the Clerk’s office upon request. The plaintiff shall mark exhibits with numbers and the 2 defendant shall mark exhibits with letters. Both sides are to indicate the case number on the bottom portion of the exhibit sticker. If there are multiple parties, the parties last name should precede the number or letter (e.g., “McGinty-1" or “Briggs-A”). If the parties have a joint exhibit, it shall be marked as “Jt. Ex . 1" or “ Jt. Ex. 2" etc. If the defendant has more than twenty-six (26) exhibits, double letters shall be used (e.g., AA, BB, CC, etc.). When a multi-page exhibit is used, each page of the exhibit must be separately numbered. For example, if plaintiff’s exhibit one is a three-page document, the first page should be marked “1-1”, the second page should be marked “1-2”, and the third page should be marked “1-3”. The Court recommends that counsel place all exhibits in three-ring looseleaf binders with appropriately marked divider tabs. A table of contents for each binder must be included. Stipulations of Fact Counsel for the parties shall confer with one another in person in order to prepare written stipulations as to all uncontested facts to be presented at trial to the Court. Said stipulations shall be filed with the Court no later than ten (10) days prior to the scheduled trial date. The Court will not allow direct or cross examination of any witness with respect to facts which are uncontested and facts which could have been stipulated. Joint Statement of Disputed Facts Counsel for the parties shall confer with one another in person to prepare a joint statement listing all disputed issues of fact which are to be submitted to the Court. Such statement shall be filed with the Court no later than ten (10) days prior to the scheduled trial 3 date. Deposition Testimony (Video Tape and Written Transcript) When depositions (video tape and written transcript) are intended to be used as evidence at trial, counsel proposing to use such deposition testimony shall notify opposing counsel at least five (5) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Any objections to the deposition testimony must be filed in writing with the Court at least four (4) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Counsel proposing to use said deposition testimony shall file a reply brief within two (2) days thereafter or indicate agreement to delete the portions to which there is objection. If it is a video tape deposition, the Court must be provided with a complete written transcript of the video tape deposition. The Court will not allow the use of deposition testimony at trial unless counsel had complied with all of these procedures. Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law in Non-Jury Trials In all non-jury cases, counsel for each of the parties shall prepare Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of law, which shall be filed with the Court and served upon opposing counsel no later than ten (10) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Proposed Finding of Fact and Conclusions of Law shall be consecutively numbered and set forth in separate paragraphs. The proposed Findings of Fact shall cite the particular witness(es) or exhibit(s) upon which each suggested finding is based; proposed Conclusions of Law shall cite relevant legal authority. Plaintiff’s Conclusions of Law shall include a statement of the applicable statute conferring jurisdiction upon the Court. Motions Any pre-trial motion, such as a motion in limine, the moving party believes requires 4 the Court’s attention prior to the commencement of trial, shall be filed in writing and served upon opposing counsel at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled trial date. The nonmoving party shall respond, if desired, at least three (3) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Failure to comply with this requirement may impair the Court’s ability to thoroughly analyze such motion before the commencement of trial. Continuances No party shall be granted a continuance of a trial or hearing without a written motion from the party or counsel stating the reason for the continuance, endorsed in writing by all parties and lead counsel of record. The Court will not consider any motion for a continuance due to a conflict of trial assignment dates unless a copy of the conflicting assignment is attached thereto. The motion shall be filed within fifteen (15) days of counsel becoming aware of the conflict and not less than thirty (30) days prior to the scheduled trial date. Settlement The parties shall notify the Court at the earliest possible time if a settlement is reached in the case. Trial Order Counsel are expected to comply with this Trial Order. In order to accomplish this, the Court will assume that all counsel have read and familiarized themselves with this Trial Order and with the Local Rules of this Court. Trial Conduct To prevent unnecessary delay and to ensure all counsel are able to fully participate in all stages of the trial, counsel are to remain available and in the proximity of the courtroom 5 during jury deliberations. If counsel needs to leave the immediate area, they must notify the courtroom deputy. IT IS SO ORDERED. __________________________________ DONALD C. NUGENT United States District Judge DATED: _____________________ 6

=== Criminal Trial Order ===

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO EASTERN DIVISION UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Plaintiff, vs. Defendant. JUDGE DONALD C. NUGENT CASE NO. CRIMINAL TRIAL ORDER Trial of this matter has been scheduled to commence on (6 weeks from arraignment date–speedy trial runs 70 days after arraignment) at 8:30 a.m. before the Honorable Donald C. Nugent, Courtroom 15A, 801 W. Superior Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44113. A Pretrial is scheduled for (2 weeks after arraignment) at 9:30 a.m., and Final Pretrial is scheduled for (1 week before trial) at 10:00 a.m. The attention of counsel for all parties is specifically directed to General Order No. 119 of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, adopted September 11, 1990 (Jury Utilization Management Plan), which provides that “plea negotiations must be completed by a date certain in advance of the scheduled trial.” Accordingly, the Court will not accept a plea agreement which is submitted later than one week prior to the date set for trial. Pursuant to Local Rule 17.1.1, counsel for the government and counsel for the defendant(s) are directed to comply with each of the following requirements: Discovery herein shall be completed on or before (1 week after first pre-trial). It is the responsibility of counsel to notify the Court in writing immediately of any failure to provide discovery material. The Court will not continue a scheduled trial because of a failure to provide discovery. Pretrial motions shall be filed on or before (1 week before final pre-trial date). The Court does not look favorably upon the practice of filing pro forma motions. It is expected by the Court that every motion filed will be supported by a substantial foundation and that such foundation will be explicitly stated in the motion pursuant to Local Rule 16.1. Responses to pretrial motions shall be filed on or before (final pre-trial date). The following trial documents are to be submitted to the Court not later than 4:00 p.m., on (two days before trial date): 1. 2. 3. Counsel for the parties are directed to confer in person and thereafter submit to the Court, in writing, a concise statement describing the case in an impartial, easily understood manner, which shall be read to the jury panel prior to voir dire. Counsel for the parties are directed to confer in person, agree upon stipulations, and reduce them to writing. Said stipulations are to be signed by all counsel and defendant(s) and submitted to the Court. Counsel for the parties are directed to submit to the Court, in writing, a list of voir dire questions and jury instructions. Counsel should confer in person and, to the extent possible, agree upon a complete set of voir dire questions and jury instructions.1 Additional proposed voir dire questions and proposed jury 1 Counsel shall also provide a copy of the jury instructions to the Court on a CD. The Court is equipped with WordPerfect X3. 2 instructions, which are disputed by the parties, may be submitted to the Court and opposing counsel. Such proposed jury instructions shall be supported by legal authority. THE COURT INTENDS TO ADHERE AS CLOSELY AS POSSIBLE TO PATTERN CRIMINAL JURY INSTRUCTIONS ISSUED BY THE SIXTH CIRCUIT AND THE FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER. 4. 5. Counsel for the parties are directed to submit to the Court appropriate memoranda, with citations to legal authority, in support of evidentiary questions and any other legal issues which may reasonably be anticipated to arise at trial. Counsel for the parties shall reduce to writing any hypothetical questions and shall tender copies to the Court and opposing counsel. Counsel shall also submit legal authorities in support of the form and authority to use such questions. Counsel should confer in person and, to the extent possible, agree on the wording of such questions. Prior to trial, counsel for the parties are also directed to complete the following: 1. In the event that demonstrative evidence, such as models or sketches, are intended to be used at trial, counsel are ordered to exchange this evidence no later than two (2) days prior to the date of trial. 2. All exhibits must be marked before trial in accordance with Local Rule 23.2. The Court will not allow exhibits to be given to the jury during trial without prior approval of the Court. If the Court approves such a request, sufficient copies for each juror must be provided in order that all jurors may view the exhibit simultaneously. The preferred method of presenting such evidence is by overhead projection or a similar method. Request for Continuance The Court will not grant a continuance of a trial or hearing without a written motion stating the reason for the continuance. The Court will not consider any motion for a continuance due to a conflict of trial assignment dates unless a copy of the conflicting assignment is attached thereto. The motion shall be filed within fifteen (15) days of counsel becoming aware of the 3 conflict and not less than thirty (30) days prior to trial. IT IS SO ORDERED. __________________________ DONALD C. NUGENT United States District Judge DATE: 4