Local Rule Rule 40.1: Court Schedule and Conduct of Business

Rule 40.1 Court Schedule and Conduct of Business

(a) Headquarters of the Clerk.

The headquarters of the clerk of court shall be in Raleigh.

(b) Divisions of the District.

There shall be four divisions of the court. The headquarters of each division and the counties comprising each division are as follows:

Name of Division Headquarters Counties Northern Division Elizabeth City Bertie Hertford Camden Northampton Chowan Pasquotank Currituck Perquimans Dare Tyrrell Gates Washington Eastern Division Greenville Beaufort Hyde Carteret Jones Craven Lenoir Edgecombe Martin Greene Pamlico Halifax Pitt Western Division Raleigh Cumberland Vance Franklin Wake Granville Warren Harnett Wayne Johnston Wilson Nash Southern Division Wilmington Bladen Onslow Brunswick Pender Columbus Robeson Duplin Sampson New Hanover

(c) Assignment of Cases to a Division.

(1) Civil Actions. The clerk shall assign all civil actions to a division when the action is filed or removed. If one or more plaintiffs are residents of this District, the clerk shall assign the case to the division in which the first named such plaintiff resides. If no plaintiff resides in the District and one or more defendants reside in the District, the clerk shall assign the action to the division in which the first named such defendant resides. In the event no party resides in the District but the claim is alleged to have arisen in the District or to involve real property in the District, the clerk shall assign the action to the division in which such claim is alleged to have arisen or in which the real property is situated. In all other instances, a case shall be assigned to a division in the discretion of the clerk. In removed actions, the matter will be assigned to the division that geographically encompasses the state court from which the action was removed.

(2) Residence of Corporation. For the purposes of this local rule, a corporate plaintiff shall be deemed to reside in the state in which it was incorporated and in the district and division in which it has its principal office, and a corporate defendant shall be deemed to reside in the division in which the corporation is alleged (a) to be incorporated and have its principal office, or (b) to be licensed to do business, or (c) to be doing business.

(3) United States as Plaintiff. For the purposes of this local rule, in cases where the United States or its agencies or officers acting in an official capacity is the plaintiff, it shall be deemed that such plaintiff does not reside in this district.

(d) Scheduling Trials.

Each judicial officer shall maintain an individual trial calendar with due regard for the priorities and requirements of law. Selected cases may be expedited by the judicial officer on his or her own motion or on the motion of any party.