STATUS (PRETRIAL SCHEDULING)

ORDER

KIMBERLY J. MUELLER, District Judge.

An initial scheduling conference was held in this case on September 28, 2017. Brent Brehm appeared for plaintiff; Stacy Tucker appeared for defendants.

Having reviewed the parties' Joint Status Report filed on September 21, 2017, and discussed a schedule for the case with counsel at the hearing, the court makes the following orders:

I. SERVICE OF PROCESS

All named defendants have been served and no further service is permitted without leave of court, good cause having been shown.

II. ADDITIONALPARTIES/AMENDMENTS/PLEADINGS

No further joinder of parties or amendments to pleadings is permitted without leave of court, good cause having been shown. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b); Johnson v. Mammoth Recreations, Inc., 975 F.2d 604 (9th Cir. 1992).

III. JURISDICTION/VENUE

Jurisdiction is predicated upon 28 U.S.C. § 1001. Jurisdiction and venue are not disputed.

IV. DISCOVERY

Initial disclosures as required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a) shall be completed by October 20, 2017. All discovery, if allowed, shall be completed by May 25, 2018. In this context, "completed" means that all discovery shall have been conducted so that all depositions have been taken and any disputes relative to discovery shall have been resolved by appropriate order if necessary and, where discovery has been ordered, the order has been obeyed. All motions to compel discovery must be noticed on the magistrate judge's calendar in accordance with the local rules of this court. While the assigned magistrate judge reviews proposed discovery phase protective orders, requests to seal or redact are decided by Judge Mueller as discussed in more detail below. In addition, while the assigned magistrate judge handles discovery motions, the magistrate judge cannot change the schedule set in this order, except that the magistrate judge may modify a discovery cutoff to the extent such modification does not have the effect of requiring a change to the balance of the schedule.

V. MOTION HEARING SCHEDULE

This matter will be decided by cross-motions for judgment under Rule 52 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, with briefing as set forth below:

VI. SETTLEMENT CONFERENCE

The parties shall participate in private mediation, with all costs split equally between the parties. On or before November 30, 2017, the parties shall inform the court, in writing, of the status of the case. If the parties are unable to settle the case during private mediation, they shall inform the court if they then request a court-convened settlement conference or if not they shall propose a briefing schedule to facilitate the court's determination of the applicable standard of review.

X. MODIFICATION OF STATUS (PRETRIAL SCHEDULING) ORDER

The parties are reminded that pursuant to Rule 16(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Status (Pretrial Scheduling) Order shall not be modified except by leave of court upon a showing of good cause. Agreement of the parties by stipulation alone does not constitute good cause. Except in extraordinary circumstances, unavailability of witnesses or counsel does not constitute good cause.

As noted, the assigned magistrate judge is authorized to modify only the discovery dates shown above to the extent any such modification does not impact the balance of the schedule of the case.

XIII. OBJECTIONS TO STATUS (PRETRIAL SCHEDULING) ORDER

This Status Order will become final without further order of the court unless objections are filed within fourteen (14) calendar days of service of this Order.

IT IS SO ORDERED.