HIPPA Sample Qualified Protective Order; sample ESI order; Preparing a final pretrial order for consent cases before Magistrate Judge Holleb Hotaling; sample juror questionnaire; Standing Order on Settlement Conferences

=== HIPPA Sample Qualified Protective Order ===

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS EASTERN DIVISION Plaintiff, v. Defendant. Case No. Magistrate Judge Keri Holleb Hotaling QUALIFIED PROTECTIVE ORDER Pursuant to Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and 45 C.F.R. § 164.512(e)(1), the Court finds good cause for the issuance of a qualified protective order and ORDERS as follows: 1. The parties and their attorneys are hereby authorized to receive, subpoena and transmit “protected health information” pertaining to Plaintiff to the extent and subject to the conditions outlined herein. 2. For the purposes of this qualified protective order, “protected health information” shall have the same scope and definition as set forth in 45 C.F.R. § 160.103 and 164.501. Protected health information includes, but is not limited to, health information, including demographic information, relating to either (a) the past, present, or future physical or mental condition of an individual, (b) the provision of care to an individual, or (c) the payment for care provided to an individual, which identifies the individual or which reasonably could be expected to identify the individual. 3. All “covered entities” (as defined by 45 C.F.R. § 160.13) are hereby authorized to disclose protected health information pertaining to Plaintiff to attorneys representing the Plaintiff and Defendant in the above-captioned litigation. 4. The parties and their attorneys shall be permitted to use or disclose the protected health information of Plaintiff for purposes of prosecuting or defending this action including any appeals of this case. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, disclosure to their attorneys, experts, consultants, court personnel, court reporters, copy services, trial consultants, and other entities or 1 persons involved in the litigation process. 5. Prior to disclosing Plaintiff’s protected health information to persons involved in this litigation, counsel shall inform each such person that Plaintiff’s protected health information may not be used or disclosed for any purpose other than this litigation. Counsel shall take all other reasonable steps to ensure that persons receiving Plaintiff’s protected health information do not use or disclose such information for any purpose other than this litigation. 6. Within 45 days after the conclusion of the litigation including appeals, the parties, their attorneys, and any person or entity in possession of protected health information received from counsel pursuant to paragraph four of this Order, shall return Plaintiff’s protected health information to the covered entity or destroy any and all copies of protected health information pertaining to Plaintiff, except that counsel are not required to secure the return or destruction of protected health information submitted to the court. 7. This Order does not control or limit the use of protected health information pertaining to Plaintiff that comes into the possession of the parties or their attorneys from a source other than a “covered entity,” as that term is defined in 45 C.F.R. § 160.103. 8. Nothing in this Order authorizes counsel for the Defendants to obtain medical records or information through means other than formal discovery requests, subpoenas, depositions, pursuant to a patient authorization, or other lawful process. 9. This Order does not authorize either party to seal court filings or court proceedings. The Court will make a good cause determination for filing under seal if and when the parties seek to file Plaintiff’s protected health information under seal. ENTERED: __________________________________ Hon. Keri Holleb Hotaling, United States Magistrate Judge 2

=== sample ESI order ===

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS EASTERN DIVISION _________________________, Plaintiff, v. _________________________, Defendant. Case No. _____________ Magistrate Judge Keri Holleb Hotaling [MODEL] STIPULATED ORDER FOR DISCOVERY OF ELECTRONICALLY STORED INFORMATION FOR STANDARD LITIGATION 1. PURPOSE This Order will govern discovery of electronically stored information (“ESI”) in this case as a supplement to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and any other applicable orders and rules. 2. COOPERATION The parties are aware of the importance the Court places on cooperation and commit to cooperate in good faith throughout the matter consistent with this Court’s Guidelines for the Discovery of ESI. 3. ESI LIAISON The parties have identified liaisons to each other (in-house or retained) who are and will be knowledgeable about and responsible for discussing their respective ESI. Each e-discovery liaison will be, or have access to those who are, knowledgeable about the technical aspects of e- discovery, including the location, nature, accessibility, format, collection, search methodologies, and production of ESI in this matter. The parties will rely on the liaisons, as needed, to confer about ESI and to help resolve disputes without court intervention. 4. PRESERVATION The parties have discussed their preservation obligations and needs and agree that preservation of potentially relevant ESI will be reasonable and proportionate. To reduce the costs and burdens of preservation and to ensure proper ESI is preserved, the parties agree that: a) Only ESI created or received between ________ and ________ will be preserved; b) The parties have exchanged a list of the types of ESI they believe should be preserved and the names of the custodians, or general job titles or descriptions of custodians, for whom they believe ESI should be preserved. The list is not attached to this order but shall be retained by the parties separately. The parties shall add or remove custodians as reasonably necessary; c) The following data sources are not reasonably accessible because of undue burden or cost pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(2)(B) and ESI from these sources will be preserved but not searched, reviewed, or produced: _____________; d) The following data sources are not reasonably accessible, and the parties agree not to preserve the following: _____________; 5. SEARCH The parties agree that in responding to an initial Fed. R. Civ. P. 34 request, or earlier if appropriate, they will meet and confer about methods to search ESI in order to identify ESI that is subject to production in discovery and filter out ESI that is not subject to discovery. The parties agree that they will exchange keyword search terms, Boolean connectors, and/or concept search criteria if that method is used. The parties have agreed to confer about whether metadata shall be produced in discovery. 6. PRODUCTION FORMATS The parties agree to produce documents in ☐ PDF, ☐TIFF, ☐native and/or ☐paper (insert additional format) or a combination thereof (check all that apply)] file formats. If particular documents warrant a different format, the parties will cooperate to arrange for the mutually acceptable production of such documents. The parties agree not to degrade the searchability of documents as part of the document production process. 7. PHASING [If necessary] When a party propounds discovery requests pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 34, the parties agree to phase the production of ESI and the initial production will be from the following sources and custodians: _____________________________________________________. Following the initial production, the parties will continue to prioritize the order of subsequent productions. 8. DOCUMENTS PROTECTED FROM DISCOVERY a) Pursuant to Fed. R. Evid. 502(d), the production of a privileged or work-product- protected document, whether inadvertent or otherwise, is not a waiver of privilege or protection from discovery in this case or in any other federal or state proceeding. For example, the mere production of privileged or work-product-protected documents in this case as part of a mass production is not itself a waiver in this case or in any other federal or state proceeding. b) The parties have agreed upon process pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(5) as follows ____________________ c) Communications involving trial counsel that post-date the filing of the complaint need not be placed on a privilege log. 9. MODIFICATION This Stipulated Order may be modified upon motion to the Court for good cause shown. SO STIPULATED, through Counsel of Record. s/_________________________ Counsel for Plaintiff s/_________________________ Counsel for Defendant ENTERED: [date] _______________________________ Keri Holleb Hotaling, United States Magistrate Judge

=== Preparing a final pretrial order for consent cases before Magistrate Judge Holleb Hotaling ===

MAGISTRATE JUDGE KERI HOLLEB HOTALING 219 South Dearborn Street Courtroom# 1700 Chambers# 1756 Chicago, Illinois 60604 Phone: (312) 435-3063 Courtroom Deputy – Rosa Franco Room# 1726 / Phone: (312) 435-7558 [email protected] PREPARATION OF FINAL PRETRIAL ORDER FOR CONSENT CASES BEFORE MAGISTRATE JUDGE HOLLEB HOTALING The parties shall jointly prepare and submit a Final Pretrial Order with the below-listed items to Judge Holleb Hotaling’s courtroom deputy or to Chambers no later than fourteen (14) days prior to the trial date. The Court prefers the items be separate Word documents that are editable. 1. Statement of jurisdiction. 2. Proposed Statement of the Case: an agreed, concise statement of the claim(s) of plaintiff(s), defense(s) of defendant(s), and all counterclaims and cross claims. In a jury case, this statement will be read to the jury during voir dire. 3. Itemization of damages and other relief sought. 4. A list of names and addresses of all individuals who will be present for trial. This list should include all witnesses (including expert witnesses) and their role in the case: a) who will be called; b) who may be called; and c) whose deposition will be used. Please also include all attorneys and paralegals who will be present at trial, along with their business and cell phone numbers and email addresses. In a jury case, this list of names will be read to the jury during voir dire (see Sample Juror Questionnaire on Judge Holleb Hotaling’s webpage). 5. A list of names and addresses of all expert witnesses who will be called. 6. A schedule of all exhibits a party may introduce at trial, identified by trial exhibit number. The opposing party shall state which exhibits are objected to and the basis for the objection. An electronic copy of each party’s proposed exhibits is to be delivered to the Court after the pretrial conference. Page 1 of 2 7. The parties are to state the type of trial (i.e., bench or jury) and provide a realistic estimate of the expected length of trial. 8. A statement summarizing the current status of settlement negotiations. 9. In a jury trial, the parties are instructed to meet and agree on jury instructions and to file proposed instructions with the Final Pretrial Order, noting any objections as necessary. The Word version is also to be emailed to the Chambers email box. The parties should concentrate their efforts on the substantive jury instructions related to the merits. Judge Holleb Hotaling refers to the Seventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, which should be used absent a good reason for not doing so. 10. For a jury trial, Judge Holleb Hotaling often uses a written questionnaire as an initial basis for voir dire. Counsel will be given copies of the completed questionnaires before jury selection begins. A sample of this questionnaire containing Judge Holleb Hotaling’s typical general voir dire questions can be obtained from the her webpage. In addition to those questions, any proposed voir dire special to the case should be included in the Final Pretrial Order. If any question proposed by an opposing party is objected to, the objection should be noted in the Final Pretrial Order. 11. Unless the Court affirmatively sets a different schedule, any Daubert motions are to be filed no later than sixty (60) days prior to trial. 12. Unless the Court affirmatively sets a different schedule, motions in limine shall be filed no later than twenty-one (21) days before trial and responses no later than fourteen (14) days before trial. Motions in limine are not favored and should be used sparingly. Judge Holleb Hotaling discourages the filing of “boilerplate” motions in limine or motions that address matters not in dispute. Prior to filing any motions in limine, the parties are to have a Rule 37 meet-and-confer concerning the same; if that process results in agreement that certain matters are admissible or inadmissible, that agreement should be memorialized in a stipulation to be provided to Judge Holleb Hotaling in the Final Pretrial Order or at the final pretrial conference. The filing of a party’s motions in limine shall include a statement of compliance with Rule 37. 13. Any requests for daily or other expedited transcripts and real-time reporting must be made at least seven (7) days prior to trial so that an appropriate court reporter can be assigned to the trial. 14. A final pretrial conference will be held approximately ten (10) days prior to trial. The purpose of this conference shall be to avoid surprises and to simplify the trial. At the conference, Judge Holleb Hotaling will address pending motions in limine, objections to witnesses and exhibits, and contested jury instructions, and will discuss trial procedures and scheduling. Lead trial counsel fully prepared and with authority to discuss all aspects of the case must attend. The parties are welcome to attend the pretrial conference with their attorneys if they wish, but are not required to attend unless settlement will be discussed at the conference. Entered: January 24, 2024 _____________________________ Hon. Keri L. Holleb Hotaling, United States Magistrate Judge Page 2 of 2

=== sample juror questionnaire ===

CONFIDENTIAL JUROR QUESTIONNAIRE Dear Ladies and Gentlemen: On behalf of Judge Keri Holleb Hotaling and her staff, welcome to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. We sincerely appreciate your participation as a prospective juror and hope you find the experience to be rewarding. Whether or not you are selected as a juror in this case or another in the building, you are an important part of our system of justice. Below please find a confidential questionnaire. Only the judge, her staff, lawyers involved in the case, and the parties will have permission to see your answers. All copies will be destroyed after the trial. These questions are intended to focus on your ability to be objective and free of prejudice from the issues in controversy, the parties, and their attorneys. Thus, it is important for you to advise Judge Holleb Hotaling of anything which will adversely affect your ability to serve as a juror in this case. Honesty and candor are crucial to a fair trial. There is blank space at the end of this questionnaire if you need additional room to explain any of your answers. STATEMENT OF THE CASE INITIAL QUESTIONS 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Full Name: _______________________________________________________________________________ This trial is expected to last from START DATE through END DATE Is there any reason you cannot be available for the duration of the trial? If yes, briefly describe the difficulties of your situation. We may later question you privately about these circumstances. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ Do you suffer from any hearing difficulties or other health problems you believe might interfere with your ability to be a juror? If so, please briefly describe the nature of your problem. We may later question you privately about these circumstances. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ Do you have any language comprehension or speaking difficulties you believe might interfere with your ability to be a juror? If so, please briefly describe the nature of your problem. We may later question you privately about these circumstances. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ Are you able to read, write, and speak in English? ____________________________________________ Please list the cities or suburbs where you have lived for the last ten years (if Chicago, please identify what part of Chicago, for example, South Side, Rogers Park, etc.): ___________________________________________________________________________________________ PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTIONS ON REVERSE SIDE 7. 8. 9. Do you own your home or rent it? ___________________________________________________________ Level of education/degrees: _________________________________________________________________ Your occupation, name of your employer, and number of years employed there (if retired or unemployed, please describe your last employment): __________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. What other jobs have you had during your working life? Any military service? __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. 12. Do you have any legal training or experience, either from formal classes or through experience on-the-job? If yes, please describe. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ If you are married, describe your spouse’s occupation, employer, and number of years (if spouse is retired, describe past employment): _________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. If you have any grown children, please list their age, occupation, and employer: __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. Please list the occupation and employer for others who live with you (for example, parents, roommates): __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 18. Please identify the sources you use to obtain information regarding news, politics and current events (e.g., newspapers, specific websites, cable news, radio stations, etc.). __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 19. Do you have prior jury experience in federal court, state court, or on the grand jury? If yes, please describe where, when, and type of case. (DO NOT disclose the verdict.) Did you ever serve as the foreperson? __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTIONS ON REVERSE SIDE 20. Have you or any close friends or family members been involved in a civil or criminal legal proceeding (excluding divorce)? If so, please identify the person(s) involved and the outcome of the litigation. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 21. Have you ever testified in court or in a deposition? If so, please describe. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 22. Do you belong to any religious, political, social, or civic organizations? If so, describe your activities. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 26. Do you have any opinions about civil lawsuits for monetary damages, either pro or con? __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ 27. 28. 31. Do you believe the filing of a lawsuit automatically means a plaintiff (i.e., the filer of a lawsuit) has been wronged and is entitled to recover from a defendant (i.e., the person or company being sued)? __________________________________________________________________________________________ Have you heard anything about this case before today? If so, please explain. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ Is there anything about the nature of this case that might make it difficult for you to be fair to either the plaintiffs or the defendants in this case? If so, please explain. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTIONS ON REVERSE SIDE INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY BE PRESENT FOR TRIAL The following individuals may be present during of the trial of this matter. The Court is trying to be thorough during this stage of the potential juror screening process; you should make no inferences if any of these individuals are ultimately not present at trial. Please circle anyone below who you believe you may be familiar with/have had any dealings with. Please also circle anyone you believe your family or friends may be familiar with/have had dealings with. PLAINTIFFS: PLAINTIFFS’ COUNSEL: DEFENDANT: DEFENDANTS’ COUNSEL: EXPERT WITNES PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTIONS ON REVERSE SIDE

=== Standing Order on Settlement Conferences ===

MAGISTRATE JUDGE KERI L. HOLLEB HOTALING 219 South Dearborn Street Courtroom# 1700 Chambers# 1756 Chicago, Illinois 60604 Phone: (312) 435-3063 Courtroom Deputy – Rosa Franco Room# 1726 / Phone: (312) 435-7558 [email protected] STANDING ORDER ON SETTLEMENT CONFERENCES The Court believes the parties should fully consider settlement at the earliest reasonable opportunity in a case. Even if the case cannot be settled, early consideration of settlement often can result in focusing the issues to be litigated – which can save the parties considerable time and money. The vast majority of all civil suits settle prior to trial. Therefore, settlement preparation should be treated as seriously as trial preparation. This Order sets out the procedures parties are to follow in preparing for a settlement conference, and the procedures the Court typically will employ in conducting the conference. Failure to comply with the procedures set forth in this Order may result in the unilateral cancellation of the settlement conference by the Court. 1. PRE-SETTLEMENT CONFERENCE CALL. Judge Holleb Hotaling typically schedules settlement conferences approximately two to four months from the call date, so plan accordingly when seeking a settlement referral in your case. Upon referral for settlement, the Court will set a conference call for the purpose of scheduling your settlement conference. On this call, which is about settlement only and is off the record, counsel for the parties will dial into the Court’s conference line, which will be provided on the docket. Page 1 of 6 Counsel that appears for the pre-settlement telephone call must be counsel who will represent their respective clients at the conference or are able to discuss the issues of the case and issues that may affect the settlement conference and to schedule the conference on behalf of their clients. Counsel must have the necessary clients’ (see Paragraph 5) and attorneys’ schedules (particularly unavailable dates) for at least four months so that a firm settlement conference date can be set on the call. The Court will confirm whether the parties are genuinely prepared to negotiate at a settlement conference, and if they are, the Court will outline its procedures and set a mediation format (see Paragraph 3) and schedule. If they are not, the conference is an opportunity to discuss what else might need to happen before a settlement conference can be set, or whether either of the parties is simply unwilling to negotiate at that time. After the pre-settlement conference phone call, the Court will enter a minute order specifying the settlement conference date and the appropriate dates for settlement letters to be exchanged. Once the date for a settlement conference is set, that date can only be changed by motion. Similarly, failure to comply with the schedule for exchange of settlement letters will be viewed as a violation of a court order; counsel cannot agree to amend the letter exchange deadlines amongst themselves but must contact Chambers to seek any amendment to the schedule. The fact that a settlement conference has been scheduled does not mean the parties should stop engaging in settlement discussions among themselves. The Court finds that too often the parties put settlement talks on hold until the settlement conference with the Magistrate Judge. The Court expects that many cases can be resolved among the parties without the need for court-supervised mediation. If your informal discussions are unsuccessful, the Court will expect the parties to describe in detail their settlement efforts apart from the exchange of letters required herein. 2. PRESETTLEMENT CONFERENCE DEMAND AND OFFER. The timing for the exchange of settlement correspondence will be governed by the docketed minute order setting your settlement conference. Per that schedule, plaintiff’s counsel is to simultaneously submit a demand letter to opposing counsel and to the Court (using the Chambers email address listed in the header of this Standing Order). In response, and according to the timing set forth on the docket, defendant’s counsel is to submit an offer letter to opposing counsel and to the Court (using the same email address). Do not file copies of these letters on the docket or in the Clerk’s Office. Please ensure you copy opposing counsel on all email communications with the Court unless otherwise directed by the Court during ex parte communications. The Court does not routinely accept courtesy copies of settlement letters but will notify you if a paper copy is necessary. All parties are to consider the issues set forth below in Paragraph 4 when drafting their letters and are to be mindful that while the parties themselves are intimately familiar with their case, Page 2 of 6 these settlement letters are likely the first introduction Judge Holleb Hotaling will have to the facts and issues attendant to settling the case. Therefore, the parties’ respective letters should inform the Court about the case background and issues accordingly. Parties are encouraged to be frank and open in their discussions, while treating each other with courtesy and respect. Plaintiffs are directed to include a demand that is not what plaintiff expects to win at trial, but a number that takes into account the risk of loss. If a demand includes multiple components, plaintiffs are directed to include a single lump-sum settlement demand amount, and a breakdown of any itemized amounts, including attorneys’ fees. Punitive damages are not appropriate to include in a settlement demand; a plaintiff may note they would seek punitive damages at trial, but that amount is not to be included as part of the demand during the settlement process. Similarly, defendants are expected to offer a number that does not assume zero liability. The Court views both a full-win demand and a zero offer as non-starting bargaining positions; these are not acceptable positions for a settlement letter. Similarly, the number in a party’s letter must not merely reiterate a demand/offer made in the past, but it must be compromised from that prior position; the compromise must be monetary, not just the removal of a non-monetary term. Your settlement letter should reiterate the history (including dates) of all prior demands/offers made in the case, if any. The Court may reject letters that do not comply with this rule. The parties also must be prepared to further negotiate from their written demands or offers. In other words, a party may not stand upon the demand or offer included in its written submissions to the Court but must be willing to meaningfully compromise from that position after submitting it. If there is no willingness to negotiate, there is no work for the mediator to perform. As part of the pre-settlement process, the Court frequently conducts ex parte conversations with any party about the issues raised in its letter or the productivity of any settlement conference. The Court typically notifies counsel before beginning ex parte communications, begins such communications with ex parte telephone calls with both sides, and makes a docket entry to reflect each telephonic communication. The Court will not necessarily make a docket entry for each follow-up ex parte email communication. On occasion, the exchange of settlement letters will lead directly to a settlement. If it does, the parties are to notify the Court as soon possible so we may attempt to schedule another case in your time slot. Similarly, if the parties must reschedule, or have concluded that a settlement conference is not necessary or helpful at this time, they should inform Chambers as soon as possible. 3. CONFERENCE FORMAT. Depending upon the circumstances of the case, Judge Holleb Hotaling holds settlement conferences in one of the following formats: (1) in-person; (2) virtually via Cisco WebEx videoconference, or (3) hybrid (some participants appear in-person and others appear virtually). Counsel should consult the order setting the settlement conference for details and see Page 3 of 6 Paragraph 5 for information on who must attend the settlement conference. Typically, participants in an in-person conference will report to Judge Holleb Hotaling’s courtroom listed above; participants often are relocated to other rooms in the courthouse for the settlement conference. For virtual and hybrid settlement conferences, shortly before the video settlement conference, a member of the Court’s staff usually will solicit the contact information of all who are connecting remotely. Those persons will later receive an email invitation through which they will join the video meeting on the day of the conference. In some instances, the link may be emailed to counsel to distribute to their participants within the days preceding the settlement conference. If, as occurs occasionally, an attorney will appear in-person for a client who is appearing virtually, the attorney must bring a laptop with the attorney’s own internet connectivity (through a hotspot or the like) to connect with the client by video. Well before a settlement conference with a virtual component is set to begin, all virtual participants in the settlement conference should ensure that they have installed WebEx on the device they will use to connect. They should not connect using a cell phone but must be on a tablet or laptop with a stable internet connection, in a location free from distractions. All individuals participating in a virtual settlement conference (or who are appearing virtually in a hybrid settlement conference) are expected to join their respective virtual settlement conference 15 minutes before the start of the conference. All participants must appear on video. A member of Chambers will ensure everyone is present and there are no technical issues. Counsel should ensure that clients joining remotely are engaged and prepared to participate fully by video, consistent with the foregoing. There will be no opening statement/presentation at the start of the conference. Judge Holleb Hotaling will jointly welcome parties and their counsel and will then hold private caucuses with each party, typically starting with the plaintiff, then going back and forth as negotiations dictate. Counsel will have opportunities to talk privately with their client(s) without the Court present at various points throughout this process. The Court expects both the lawyers and the party representatives to be fully prepared to participate openly during a settlement conference. The Court encourages parties and counsel to consider providing opportunities to junior lawyers to substantively participate in the settlement conference. 4. ISSUES TO BE DISCUSSED AT SETTLEMENT CONFERENCE. In addition to the demand or offer, parties should preview the following issues, as appropriate, in their settlement letters and be prepared to discuss the same at the settlement conference: 1. What are your objectives in the litigation? 2. What issues (in and outside of this lawsuit) need to be resolved? What are the strengths Page 4 of 6 and weaknesses of your case? 3. Do you understand the opposing side’s view of the case? What is wrong with their perception? What is right with their perception? 4. What are the points of agreement and disagreement between the parties? Factual? Legal? 5. What are the impediments to settlement? 6. What remedies are available through litigation or otherwise? 7. Are there possibilities for a creative resolution of the dispute? 8. Do you have adequate information to discuss settlement? If not, how will you obtain sufficient information to make a meaningful settlement discussion possible? 9. Are there outstanding liens? Do we need to include a representative of the lien holder? 5. ATTENDANCE OF PARTIES REQUIRED. Parties with ultimate settlement authority must be personally present absent explicit advance approval from Judge Holleb Hotaling. An insured party shall appear with a representative of the insurer who is authorized to negotiate, and who has authority to settle the matter up to the limits of the opposing parties’ existing settlement demand. An uninsured corporate party shall appear by a representative authorized to negotiate, and who has authority to settle the matter up to the amount of the opposing parties’ existing settlement demand or offer. Having a client with authority available by telephone is not an acceptable alternative. Because the Court generally sets aside at least three hours for each conference, it is impossible for a party who is not present to appreciate the process and the reasons which may justify a change in one’s perspective towards settlement. Sanctions will apply if this order is violated. 6. IF A PARTY DOES NOT SPEAK ENGLISH. If a party does not speak English, that party is responsible for an interpreter for the duration of the settlement conference. Please note: the interpreter must be able to translate word for word (real-time) during the settlement conference. Sanctions will apply if this order is violated. 7. STATEMENTS INADMISSIBLE. Statements made by any party in their settlement communications and during the settlement conference are not to be used in discovery and will not be admissible at trial as set forth in Local Rule 83.5 and Federal Rule of Evidence 408. Page 5 of 6 8. INVOLVEMENT OF CLIENTS. For many clients, this will be the first time they have participated in a court-supervised settlement conference. Therefore, counsel shall provide a copy of this Standing Order to the client and shall discuss the points contained herein with the client prior to the settlement communications and the settlement conference. Additionally, Counsel shall provide copies of both parties’ settlement letters to their respective clients prior to the settlement conference date. The Court expects both the lawyers and the party representatives to be fully prepared to participate and to negotiate from their demand or offer in good faith. The Court encourages all parties to keep an open mind in order to re-assess their previous positions and to find creative means to resolve the dispute. Entered: October 15, 2024 _____________________________ Keri L. Holleb Hotaling, United States Magistrate Judge Page 6 of 6