SCHEDULING ORDER (Fed. R. Civ. P. 16)
JENNIFER L. THURSTON, Magistrate Judge.
I. Date of Scheduling Conference
May 4, 2015.
II. Appearances of Counsel
Plaintiff appeared in pro per.
Heather Cohen appeared on behalf of Defendants.
III. Pleading Amendment Deadline
Any requested pleading amendments are ordered to be filed, either through a stipulation or motion to amend, no later than September 25, 2015.
IV. Discovery Plan and Cut-Off Date
The parties are ordered to exchange the initial disclosures required by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1) on or before June 5, 2015.
The parties are ordered to complete all discovery, pertaining to non-experts on or before February 1, 2016, and all discovery related to experts no later than April 8, 2016.
The parties are directed to disclose all expert witnesses, in writing, on or before February 12, 2016, and to disclose all rebuttal experts on or before March 11, 2016. The written designation of retained and non-retained experts shall be made pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. Rule 26(a)(2), (A), (B), and (C) and shall include all information required thereunder. Failure to designate experts in compliance with this order may result in the Court excluding the testimony or other evidence offered through such experts that are not disclosed pursuant to this order.
The written designation of retained and non-retained experts shall be made pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2), (A), (B), and (C) and shall include all information required thereunder. Failure to designate experts in compliance with this order may result in the Court excluding the testimony or other evidence offered through such experts that are not disclosed pursuant to this order.
The provisions of Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(4) and (5) shall apply to all discovery relating to experts and their opinions. Experts must be fully prepared to be examined on all subjects and opinions included in the designation. Failure to comply will result in the imposition of sanctions, which may include striking the expert designation and preclusion of expert testimony.
The provisions of Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(e) regarding a party's duty to timely supplement disclosures and responses to discovery requests will be strictly enforced.
A mid-discovery status conference is scheduled for November 10, 2015, at 9:00 a.m. before the Honorable Jennifer L. Thurston, United States Magistrate Judge, at the United States District Courthouse located at 510 19th Street, Bakersfield, California. A Joint Mid-Discovery Status Conference Report, carefully prepared and executed by all counsel, shall be electronically filed in CM/ECF, one (1) full week prior to the Conference and shall be e-mailed, in Word format to, JLTorders@caed.uscourts.gov. Counsel may appear by telephone, provided a written request to so appear is made to the Magistrate Judge's Courtroom Clerk no later than five (5) court days before the noticed hearing date. In the event that more than one attorney requests to appear by telephone then it shall be the obligation of the requesting part(ies) to arrange a Court Call conference.
V. Pre-Trial Motion Schedule
All non-dispositive pre-trial motions, including any discovery motions, shall be filed no later than April 18, 2016, and heard on or before May 16, 2016. Non-dispositive motions are heard at 9:00 a.m. at the United States District Courthouse in Bakersfield, California, before the Honorable Jennifer L. Thurston, United States Magistrate Judge.
No written discovery motions shall be filed without the prior approval of the assigned Magistrate Judge. A party with a discovery dispute must first confer with the opposing party in a good faith effort to resolve by agreement the issues in dispute. If that good faith effort is unsuccessful, the moving party promptly shall seek a telephonic hearing with all involved parties and the Magistrate Judge. It shall be the obligation of the moving party to arrange and originate the conference call to the court. To schedule this telephonic hearing, the parties are ordered to contact Courtroom Deputy Clerk, Susan Hall at (661) 326-6620 or via email at SHall@caed.uscourts.gov. Counsel must comply with Local Rule 251 with respect to discovery disputes or the motion will be denied without prejudice and dropped from calendar.
In scheduling such motions, the Magistrate Judge may grant applications for an order shortening time pursuant to Local Rule 144(e). However, if counsel does not obtain an order shortening time, the notice of motion must comply with Local Rule 251.
Counsel may appear and argue non-dispositive motions by telephone, provided a written request to so appear is made to the Magistrate Judge's Courtroom Clerk no later than five (5) court days before the noticed hearing date. In the event that more than one attorney requests to appear by telephone then it shall be the obligation of the moving part(ies) to arrange and originate a conference call to the court.
All dispositive pre-trial motions shall be filed no later than May 23, 2016, and heard no later than July 5, 2016, before the Honorable Jennifer L. Thurston, United States Magistrate Judge, at the United States District Courthouse in Bakersfield, California. In scheduling such motions, counsel shall comply with Fed. R. Civ. P. 56 and Local Rules 230 and 260.
VI. Motions for Summary Judgment or Summary Adjudication
The parties may file a dispositive motion related to the Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994) issue without prejudice to their filing a second dispositive motion on the merits. The parties are excused from the requirement of a pre-filing meet-and-confer session and from the requirement to file a joint statement of facts.
VII. Pre-Trial Conference Date
August 16, 2016, at 8:30 a.m. at the United States District Courthouse in Bakersfield, California before the Honorable Jennifer L. Thurston, United States Magistrate Judge.
The parties are ordered to file a Joint Pretrial Statement pursuant to Local Rule 281(a)(2). The parties are further directed to submit a digital copy of their pretrial statement in Word format, directly to Judge Thurston's chambers, by email at JLTOrders@caed.uscourts.gov.
Counsels' attention is directed to Rules 281 and 282 of the Local Rules of Practice for the Eastern District of California, as to the obligations of counsel in preparing for the pre-trial conference. The Court will insist upon strict compliance with those rules. In addition to the matters set forth in the Local Rules the Joint Pretrial Statement shall include a Joint Statement of the case to be used by the Court to explain the nature of the case to the jury during voir dire.
VIII. Trial Date
September 26, 2016, at 8:30 a.m. at the United States District Courthouse in Bakersfield, California, before the Honorable Jennifer L. Thurston, United States Magistrate Judge.
A. This is a Jury trial.
B. Counsels' Estimate of Trial Time: 3-5 days.
C. Counsels' attention is directed to Local Rules of Practice for the Eastern District of California, Rule 285.
IX. Settlement Conference
If the parties believe the matter is in a settlement posture and desire a settlement conference, they may file a joint request that the Court schedule a settlement conference.
X. Request for Bifurcation, Appointment of Special Master, or other Techniques to Shorten Trial
Not applicable at this time.
XI. Related Matters Pending
There are no pending related matters.
XII. Compliance with Federal Procedure
All counsel are expected to familiarize themselves with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the Local Rules of Practice of the Eastern District of California, and to keep abreast of any amendments thereto. The Court must insist upon compliance with these Rules to efficiently handle its increasing case load, and sanctions will be imposed for failure to follow both the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the Local Rules of Practice for the Eastern District of California.
XIII. Effect of this Order
The foregoing order represents the best estimate of the court and counsel as to the agenda most suitable to dispose of this case. The trial date reserved is specifically reserved for this case. If the parties determine at any time that the schedule outlined in this order cannot be met, counsel are ordered to notify the court immediately of that fact so that adjustments may be made, either by stipulation or by subsequent status conference.
The dates set in this Order are considered to be firm and will not be modified absent a showing of good cause even if the request to modify is made by stipulation. Stipulations extending the deadlines contained herein will not be considered unless they are accompanied by affidavits or declarations, and where appropriate attached exhibits, which establish good cause for granting the relief requested.
Failure to comply with this order may result in the imposition of sanctions.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
