Local Rule 73.03: Special Provisions for Consent for Reference of Civil Cases Under 28 U.S.C. § 636(c)
D.S.C. — Civil rule
73.03: Special Provisions for Consent for Reference of Civil Cases Under 28 U.S.C. § 636(c).
(A) Notice. Unless otherwise directed by the court, the clerk of court shall notify the parties in all civil cases that they may consent to have a magistrate judge conduct any and all proceedings in the case and order the entry of a final judgment. Notice may be provided by attachment of an appropriate form document to the scheduling order or pre-scheduling order. In categories of cases in which scheduling orders are not generally issued (i.e., cases exempt under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1)(B)) and that are not exempted by the court from this requirement, the clerk of court will forward the notice to all parties after a defendant appears.
(B) Execution of Consent. The parties may consent by submitting a proposed consent to reference signed by all parties.
(C) Approval. After the consent forms have been signed and filed, the clerk of court shall transmit a proposed order of reference to the district judge to whom the case has been assigned for approval in his or her discretion.