ORDER CONCERNING CONSENT TO MAGISTRATE JUDGE
JONATHAN E. HAWLEY, Magistrate Judge.
This Order addresses the issue of consent of the parties in Social Security Cases to have their cases heard by a United States Magistrate Judge. Consent streamlines the legal process because the legal standard of review is identical at all levels in the judicial review process. If the parties consent to have the case handled by a magistrate judge, the undersigned will enter a final decision and judgment in due course. Any appeal of this judgment must be taken directly to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. If the parties do not consent to have the case handled by a magistrate judge, the undersigned will prepare and file a Report and Recommendation for consideration by the district judge assigned to the case. The district judge will then enter a final decision and judgment in due course. An appeal from that judgment is taken to the Seventh Circuit.
Accordingly, it is ORDERED that:
Within fifteen days of the filing of Plaintiff's initial brief, the Commissioner shall initiate contact with Plaintiff's counsel (or Plaintiff if appearing pro se) to discuss consent to the jurisdiction of the magistrate judge. If ALL the parties consent to have a magistrate judge handle the case, each counsel (or Plaintiff if appearing pro se) shall sign the Consent to Exercise of Jurisdiction by a United States Magistrate Judge portion of the Notice which is an attachment with the scheduling order and submit the signed consent form to the district judge within thirty days of the filing of plaintiff's brief. The district judge will sign the Order of Reference referring the case to the appropriate magistrate judge.
NOTICE OF RIGHT TO CONSENT TO DISPOSITION OF A CIVIL CASE BY A UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
In accordance with the provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 636(c) and Fed.R.Civ.P. 73, you are hereby notified that, upon the consent of all the parties in a civil case, the Court may appoint a United States Magistrate Judge of this District, who is specially certified to conduct any or all proceedings, including trial of and the entry of a final judgment. A copy of the appropriate consent form is attached.
You should be aware that your decision to consent, or not to consent, to the disposition of your case before a United States Magistrate Judge is entirely voluntary and should be communicated to the Clerk of the Court. Only if all the parties to the case consent to the reference to a Magistrate Judge will either the District Judge or Magistrate Judge to whom the case has been assigned be informed of your decision. Neither a District Judge nor a Magistrate Judge will attempt to persuade or induce any party to consent to the reference of this case to a Magistrate Judge.
If all parties consent, the form is to be e-signed (s/NAME) by all and e-filed with the Court pursuant to guidance in the Court's Local Rules 11.4(A) or (B). A certificate of service is not required to be filed with this document.
NOTE: The Court has approved s/NAME as an official signature on the Consent Form. Copies of the form and the Court's Local Rules are available at www.ilcd.uscourts.gov.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
for the
Central District of Illinois
Plaintiff
v. Civil Action No.
Defendant
NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF A UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE TO EXERCISE JURISDICTION
In accordance with the provisions of 28 U.S.C. §636(c), and Fed.R.Civ.P. 73, you are notified that a United States magistrate judge of this district court is available to conduct any or all proceedings in this case including a jury or nonjury trial, and to order the entry of a final judgment. Exercise of this jurisdiction by a magistrate judge is, however, permitted only if all parties voluntarily consent.
You may, without adverse substantive consequences, withhold your consent, but this will prevent the court's jurisdiction from being exercised by a magistrate judge. If any party withholds consent, the identity of the parties consenting or withholding consent will not be communicated to any magistrate judge or to the district judge to whom the case has been assigned.
An appeal from a judgment entered by a magistrate judge shall be taken directly to the United States court of appeals for this judicial circuit in the same manner as an appeal from any other judgment of this district court.
CONSENT TO THE EXERCISE OF JURISDICTION BY A UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
In accordance with provisions of 28 U.S.C. §636(c) and Fed.R.Civ.P. 73, the parties in this case consent to have a United States magistrate judge conduct any and all proceedings in this case, including the trial, order the entry of a final judgment, and conduct all post-judgment proceedings.
Parties' printed names Signatures of parties or attorneys Dates
________________________________ ___________________________________________________ __________________________
________________________________ ___________________________________________________ __________________________
________________________________ ___________________________________________________ __________________________
________________________________ ___________________________________________________ __________________________
Reference Order
IT IS ORDERED: This case is referred to a United States magistrate judge to conduct all proceedings and order the entry of a final judgment in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 636(c) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 73.
Date: ___________________________ ___________________________________________
District Judge's signature
___________________________________________
Printed name and title
Note: Return this form to the clerk of court only if you are consenting to the exercise of jurisdiction by a United States magistrate judge. Do not return this form to a judge.
TO E-FILE THE CONSENT TO MAGISTRATE JUDGE FORM:
1. Scan and save the form in pdf format.
2. Log on to CM/ECF.
3. Click on Civil on the top left hand corner of the blue toolbar.
4. Click on Other Filings/Other Documents.
5. Choose "Proposed Consent to Jurisdiction by Magistrate Judge" from drop down box. Click next.
6. Enter case number. Click next.
7. Browse for the saved form. Click next.
8. Case confirmation screen appears. Click next.
9. Docket text appears. Click next.
10. NEF appears. Consent has been filed.
11. Place the original document in your file. (Pursuant to Local Rule 11.4(B)(3) — "The filing party must retain the original document until one year after the date that the judgment has become final by the conclusion of direct review or the expiration of the time for seeking such review has passed.")
RULE 11.4 ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES
(A) Signatures by Electronic Filers.
(1) Use of a log-in and password for electronic filing constitutes and has the same force and effect as the filer's signature for purposes of Fed. R. Civ. P. 11, the Local Rules of this Court, and any other purpose for which a signature may be required in connection with proceedings in this Court.
(2) Electronic filers should sign in the following manner: "s/Jane Doe." Documents signed by an attorney must be filed using that attorney's log-in and password; they may not be filed using a log-in and password belonging to another attorney.
(3) Where multiple attorney signatures are required, such as on a joint motion or a stipulation, the filing attorney may enter the "s/" of the other attorneys to reflect their agreement with the contents of the documents.
(B) Signatures by Non-Electronic Filers.
(1) If an original document requires the signatures[s] of one or more persons not registered for electronic filing (e.g. settlement agreement with a pro se party, or a witness' affidavit), the filing party or its attorney must initially confirm that the content of the document is acceptable to all persons required to sign the documents. Original signatures of all non-electronic filers must be obtained before the document is filed.
(2) The filing party must either redact the original signature[s] and efile the redacted version of the document, or provide the redacted version to the Clerk's Office for scanning and electronic filing. The filed document must indicate the identity of each non-registered signatory in the form "s/Jane Doe". A certificate of Service upon all parties and/or counsel of record must be filed with the document.
(3) The filing party must retain the original document until one year after the date that the judgment has become final by the conclusion of direct review or the expiration of the time for seeking such review has passed.
(4) The electronically filed document as it is maintained on the court's servers constitutes the official version of that record. The court will not maintain a paper copy of the original document except as otherwise provided in these Rules.
(C) Disputes Over Authenticity.
Any party or non-filing signatory who disputes the authenticity of an electronically filed document or the signatures on that document must file an objection to the document within 14 days of receiving the notice that the document has been filed.
