Practices and Procedures (rev 4/23/2025); Brief Writing Preferences; Judge Ranjan's Rule 26(f) Report

=== Practices and Procedures (rev 4/23/2025) ===

Judge Ranjan’s1 Practices and Procedures (rev. 4/23/25) These procedures are intended to supplement the local and federal rules of civil and criminal procedure. They apply to all counsel and pro se parties. I. General procedures a. Telephone calls and e-mails to chambers. Counsel may contact chambers for routine scheduling matters, and to raise any discovery disputes. In any communications, court staff will not provide any legal advice or discuss the merits of any cases. Members of the public may also contact chambers to obtain information regarding public access to any proceedings, such as dial-in or videoconference information. All inquiries should be directed the Courtroom Deputy, Peter Kosloski, at [email protected], or (412) 208-7495. to b. Decorum. Counsel shall not exhibit familiarity with witnesses, jurors, opposing counsel, or the Court. During trial, counsel must not block the jurors’ view of a witness and must not approach a witness without permission. Counsel must stand when speaking for the record and when addressing the Court, except for brief objections during testimony, or when informally discussing the case during status conferences. c. Court reporter. In criminal cases, the Court will have a court reporter present for all proceedings. In civil cases, the Court will generally only have a court reporter present for oral arguments on substantive motions, evidentiary hearings, the final pre-trial conference, and all trial proceedings. If no court reporter is present and counsel has an objection, or otherwise desires the proceeding be on the record for any reason, counsel has the right to and should request a court reporter to be present and then place the objection or proceedings on the record. d. Continuances. If a party seeks to continue a court proceeding, it is helpful if counsel includes within the motion alternative proposed dates/times near the original hearing date when all 1 Judge Ranjan pronounces his last name “Ron John.” counsel are available. Motions to continue court proceedings will be granted for good cause (such as an illness, medical procedure, family emergency, pre-paid vacation, or previously scheduled court proceeding). II. Civil case procedures a. Appearances. To ensure efficient communication of early scheduling orders through ECF, all counsel must enter their appearances as soon as practicable. b. Initial case management conference. After all defense counsel have entered appearances or all Defendants have answered the complaint, the Court will schedule an initial case management conference. Before that conference, the parties will be ordered to confer and submit a Rule 26(f) report and ADR stipulation. Judge Ranjan prefers to use a shortened form for the Rule 26(f) report, which is linked on his webpage. In completing the ADR stipulation, counsel must ensure that the time/date of the ADR session is within 60 days of the initial case management conference, the names/titles of the individuals who will attend are listed, and any representative has full settlement authority. The Court will strike ADR stipulations that do not comply with these requirements. The initial case management conference will typically occur in person, in the courtroom. If any lead counsel are from out of town, they may file a motion to request that the conference occur by telephone or videoconference. Counsel must be prepared to engage in substantive discussion at the initial case management conference. c. Commencement of discovery. Counsel shall not propound written discovery requests or otherwise commence any formal discovery until after the initial case management conference and after issuance of a case management order. d. Rule 12 motions. In a civil case, if a defendant elects to file a Rule 12 motion, defense counsel must meet and confer with plaintiff’s counsel before filing to determine whether any purported defects with the complaint can be cured. Any motion to dismiss must come with a certificate stating that the defendant has made good-faith efforts to confer with the plaintiff to 2 determine whether the identified pleading deficiencies properly may be cured by amendment. Rule 12 motions that do not contain the required certification will be denied. This requirement applies to all Rule 12 motions, including motions for judgment on the pleadings under Rule 12(c). e. Discovery length. The Court has no set period for the completion of discovery, but the date that is proposed in the Rule 26(f) report should be a realistic deadline based on the nature of the case—i.e., a deadline by which both parties can reasonably complete all discovery without further extension. The reason for this is that the Court does not like motions for extensions, and is unlikely to grant such motions, even consent motions. In cases where the Court has set a “presumptive trial date” at the onset, the parties’ proposed discovery deadlines should account for that date. f. Discovery disputes. For all discovery disputes, if the matter cannot be resolved after the parties confer in good faith, the parties shall contact chambers to raise the issue. At that time, the Court will typically have counsel provide a brief e-mail summary of their respective positions, and then the Court will provide guidance, decide the dispute, or order briefing. No discovery-related motions shall be filed until after the e-mail exchange. In the event discovery motions are subsequently filed, counsel for each side should, pursuant to Rule 37, provide support for their reasonable expenses (including attorneys’ fees), as expenses will be awarded to the prevailing party when permitted under Rule 37. g. Routine motions. For routine motions (including motions for leave to amend the pleadings, extensions of time, or continuances), counsel for movant must confer with opposing counsel to obtain consent, and state in the motion whether consent was obtained. Briefs are not necessary. h. Rule 56 motions. The Court will issue a briefing schedule for all Rule 56 motions, and will typically not consider any motions filed before the completion of discovery. For most motions, the Court excuses the requirements under Local Rule 56, such as having the parties forego the submission of separate concise statements and responsive statements of material facts. For cross-motions for summary judgment, the Court uses a briefing schedule like that 3 used in cross-appeals under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 28.1. In complex cases, the Court will permit issue-specific briefs on summary judgment. i. Briefing schedule. Unless ordered otherwise, the principal brief in support of a motion should be no more than 20 pages. The Court will issue briefing schedules for all motions, which will provide the due dates and page limits for any later briefs. j. Briefing content. Counsel are free to structure their briefs in the manner and style that they believe to be most persuasive. Counsel are encouraged to review the “brief-writing preferences” document, which is on the Court’s webpage. k. Oral argument. The Court will entertain requests for oral argument on any motion. The Court encourages parties to have junior attorneys argue motions (or aspects of motions). l. Injunctions. If a complaint seeks a TRO or preliminary injunction, the Court will typically schedule a telephonic conference as soon as possible. The plaintiff should make all efforts to ensure that the defendant is served and has counsel, as the Court will rarely grant ex parte motions. m. Class and collective actions. For class and collective actions, the Court expects the named plaintiffs to attend all court conferences and hearings (either in person or remotely), and settlement conferences and mediations. Any request for an incentive award for a named plaintiff must demonstrate active involvement of the named plaintiff in the litigation. For classwide settlements, the parties should be prepared for a fulsome presentation at the preliminary-approval stage, as the Court will scrutinize the settlement closely at that stage and before notices are sent. For individual, non-collective FLSA settlements, the Court finds that court approval is not necessary; the parties may simply file a stipulation of dismissal at the appropriate time. n. Trial. The Court will issue a separate pre-trial order, which outlines trial procedures. In certain cases (usually personal- injury, UM/UIM, and non-complex employment and civil rights cases), the Court will issue an order setting a “presumptive trial 4 date,” with the trial to generally occur approximately 10-18 months from the date of the initial case management conference. In those cases, the trial date will be finalized at the initial case management conference, and all pre-trial deadlines will be set to account for that date. Requests to continue the trial date will be granted only in extraordinary circumstances. III. Criminal case procedures a. Initial case conference. The Court will conduct an initial case conference about 40 days after arraignment, typically with only counsel present (unless defense counsel requests the defendant’s presence). After obtaining an extension from the magistrate judge at arraignment, defense counsel should not file any motions to extend the pre-trial motion deadline until after the initial conference. At the conference, counsel should be prepared to engage in a preliminary, substantive discussion of the case. For example, in most circumstances, the government should anticipate being asked to provide the Court with an overview of the evidence against the defendant and to answer questions about the scope of discovery. b. Extensions to file pre-trial motions. The Court will grant motions to extend the pre-trial motion deadline for good cause, such as where a case is factually complex, involves multiple defendants, or involves voluminous discovery. Otherwise, the Court is not inclined to grant serial extensions, and will require counsel to work expeditiously towards a plea or trial within the time frame of the Speedy Trial Act. c. Change-of-plea hearings. Counsel may call or e-mail chambers when they are prepared to schedule a change-of-plea hearing. If there is a plea agreement, the government must e-mail defense counsel and the Court a copy of the agreement seven days in advance of the hearing. At the same time, the government will be ordered to e-mail defense counsel and the Court the summary of the evidence it would present at trial so that defense counsel can review it with the defendant before the hearing. While the parties certainly are free to enter any plea agreements that are authorized 5 by law, counsel should be aware that the Court does not prefer Rule 11(c)(1)(C) plea agreements. d. Sentencing. The Court follows the schedule for pre-sentencing submissions and deadlines in the local rules. e. Trial. The Court will issue a separate pre-trial order, which outlines pre-trial procedures and deadlines. Rev. 4/23/25 6

=== Brief Writing Preferences ===

Judge Ranjan’s brief-writing preferences I appreciate well-written briefs. To that end, you may wish to consider some of my preferences, noted below. 1) Active Voice. Write in short sentences, with plain language, and use the active voice. 2) Topic Sentences. Each paragraph in your brief should start with a strong topic sentence, advocating your affirmative point. For example, don’t start a paragraph by reciting the law (that should come after the topic sentence), and don’t start it by saying what the other side argued (again, that should come after the topic sentence). 3) Brevity. Be brief. If you are butting up against a page limit, then that presents an opportunity to revise. 4) Block Quotes. Avoid block quotes. 5) Adjectives and Adverbs. Strive to eliminate these. Similarly, keep rhetoric in general to a minimum. 6) Introduction. The introduction is a critical part of your brief. Your introduction should be 1-2 pages and be a clear roadmap of the entire brief, laying out your main points in a succinct fashion. Don’t waste space in your introduction with throat-clearing formalities (e.g., “Here comes Plaintiff, by her undersigned counsel...”). 7) Your Opponent. When describing the other side’s arguments, please use respectful language. For example, say “the plaintiff’s argument is not well- is meritless, non-sensical, and taken,” not “the plaintiff’s argument disingenuous.” Out of respect, when referring to an individual party, please consider calling him “Mr. Smith,” not just “Smith.” Also, don’t personally attack opposing counsel. 8) Legalese. Do not use Latin or legalese; this includes words like “arguendo,” “infra,” and “supra.” The only exceptions are where the names of a claim, defense, or doctrine are in Latin and there is no English substitute (for example, “negligence per se,” “ex post facto violation,” “motion to reinstate nunc pro tunc”). 1 9) Abbreviations. Avoid abbreviations and defined terms. A brief is not a contract. For instance, if you represent Winston Steel Company, Inc. just say “Winston” in the brief. You don’t need to define it as Winston Steel Company, Inc. (or “Winston”), and definitely don’t abbreviate it with an ugly-looking acronym, like “WSCI.” In this same vein, try not to call parties “Plaintiffs” or “Defendants,” and instead use proper names, if possible. 10) Know Your Standard. The standard of review governing your brief will dictate how your arguments are framed. For example, if you are writing a brief in support of a motion to dismiss, you shouldn’t say things like, “Plaintiffs cannot prove X.” A motion to dismiss tests the sufficiency of the pleading, not the proofs—so, instead, you would frame your argument like, “Plaintiffs failed to plead X.” 11) Case Analysis. Avoid excessive case analysis. Instead, make your point, then cite relevant cases with parenthetical explanations immediately after for support. I prefer direct quotations from the opinion to one-sentence summaries that you generate yourself. If there is an important case that needs to be discussed, emphasized, or distinguished, then you can engage in discussion of that case. This should be done sparingly, and only if the case is directly on point or if it is featured prominently in your opponent’s brief. 12) Citation Form. Follow the Blue Book as a guide, but interpret it in a reasonable manner. Don’t be a slave to it, especially on abbreviations. Just try to be rational and internally consistent in how you cite things. 13) Headings. Use short headings, and minimize the use of subheadings. Be consistent regarding the format of headings (some people initial cap certain words in headings, some people use all lower case; it doesn’t really matter, so long as you are consistent. The popular trend is toward no initial caps). 14) Visual Tools. Use visual devices and tools to make things easier on your reader. In this regard, paragraph breaks are critical; break your paragraphs up, and avoid a paragraph that is more than a half-page long. Additionally, where appropriate, use organizational devices like numbering (“first,” “second,” “third”); bullet point lists; charts and graphics; and timelines. For example, in a case where the timing of events is critical or convoluted, consider creating a timeline in the fact section. 15) Typos. Your brief should not have typographical errors. This also includes formatting nits (e.g., are all your apostrophes “smart” ones, or do you have some “straight” ones peppered in from when you copied and pasted a case cite? 2 Do you have hanging headings? Did you inadvertently paginate your certificate of service?). your brief reputation. Your your 16) Protect reputation. Substantively, that means don’t stretch your arguments, play fast and loose with the record or the law, and do other things that undermine your credibility. Aesthetically, you should strive to have a professional-looking brief. Subject to any required rules, you should think about selecting handsome fonts and font sizes, how your cover page looks, and other details that make your brief look professional. part of is 17) Footnotes. Try to avoid or minimize footnotes. If you want to challenge yourself, write a brief with no footnotes. 18) Grammar. People have different views on grammar. Your use of grammar should be defensible. For example, some people add one apostrophe to the possessive for “Mr. Jones’ car.” Other people add an extra “s”—"Mr. Jones’s car.” I add the s, and can defend it based on the grammar rules of Strunk & White. 19) Sections of the Brief. Consider whether your brief needs certain sections. For summary judgment briefs, your brief may not need a section on the standard of review, since all judges are familiar with that standard. Or, for a motion to dismiss, your brief may not need a fact section (or may just warrant a very brief summary of the facts) if the facts are apparent from the complaint and otherwise are raised in the context of your argument section. 20) Reply Briefs. Reply briefs are different than principal briefs. A good test for a well-written reply brief is that someone should be able to read your reply brief and understand the critical aspects of the case. A reply should briefly re- state key principal arguments; point out important weaknesses and concessions by your opponent; and respond to important arguments raised by your opponent. It does not have to be exhaustive and does not have to address every single point or case raised by your opponent. If your opponent cites a number of cases, consider finding a few common distinguishing points to deal with them all together. 3

=== Judge Ranjan's Rule 26(f) Report ===

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA Plaintiff, vs. Defendants. Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f) REPORT OF THE PARTIES 1. Subjects of Fact Discovery: 2. Subjects of Expert Discovery: 3. Can fact and expert discovery occur at the same time? Why/why not? 4. Pre-trial Deadlines: a. Date for Initial Disclosures: b. Date for joinder/amendment: c. Date for close of fact discovery: d. Date for close of expert discovery, if bifurcated: 5. Do the parties want a Rule 502 non-waiver order – Yes or No? 6. Are there any ESI issues to address? If yes, please explain: 7. Protective Order – Yes or No? If yes, please explain: ____________________________ __________________________ Respectfully submitted,