Local Rule 16.1: Civil Case Management
N.D.N.Y. — Civil rule
16.1 Civil Case Management.
This Court has found that the interests of justice are most effectively served by adopting a systematic, differential case management system that tailors the level of individualized and case-specific management to such criteria as case complexity, time required to prepare a case for trial, and availability of judicial and other resources.
(a) Filing of Complaint/Service of Process. Upon the filing of a complaint, the Clerk shall issue to the plaintiff General Order 25, which requires, among other things, service of process upon all defendants within sixty (60) days of the filing of the complaint. This expedited service requirement is necessary to ensure adequate time for pretrial discovery and motion practice.
(b) Assignment of District Judge/Magistrate Judge. Immediately upon the filing of a civil action, the Clerk shall assign the action or proceeding to a District Judge and may also assign the action or proceeding to a Magistrate Judge pursuant to the Court's assignment plan. When a civil action is assigned to a Magistrate Judge, the Magistrate Judge shall conduct proceedings in accordance with these Rules and 28 U.S.C. § 636 as directed by the District Judge. Once assigned, either judicial officer shall have authority to design and issue a case management order.
(c) Initial Pretrial Conference. Except for cases excluded under section II of General Order 25, an initial pretrial conference shall be scheduled in accordance with the time set forth in Fed. R. Civ. P. 16. The Clerk shall set the date of this conference upon the filing of the complaint. The purpose of this conference will be to prepare and adopt a case-specific management plan which will be memorialized in a case management order. See subsection (d) below. In order to facilitate the adoption of such a plan, prior to the scheduled conference, counsel for all parties shall confer among themselves as Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f) requires and shall use the Civil Case Management Plan form contained in the General Order 25 filing packet. The parties shall file their jointly-proposed plan, or if they cannot reach consensus, each party shall file its own proposed plan with the Clerk at least fourteen (14) business days prior to the scheduled pretrial conference.
(d) Subject Matter of Initial Pretrial Conference. At the initial pretrial conference, the Court shall consider, and the parties shall be prepared to discuss, the following:
1. Deadlines for joinder of parties, amendment of pleadings, completion of discovery, and filing of dispositive motions;
2. Trial date;
3. Requests for jury trial;
4. Subject matter and personal jurisdiction;
5. Factual and legal bases for claims and defenses;
6. Factual and legal issues in dispute;
7. Factual and legal issues upon which the parties can agree or which they can narrow through motion practice and which will expedite resolution of the dispute;
8. Specific relief requested, including method for computing damages;
9. Intended discovery and proposed methods to limit and/or decrease time and expense thereof;
10. Suitability of case for mandatory mediation;
11. Measures for reducing length of trial;
12. Related cases pending before this or other U.S. District Courts;
13. Procedures for certifying class actions, if appropriate;
14. Settlement prospects; and 15. If the case is in the mediation track, the estimated time for completion of mediation.
(e) Uniform Pretrial Scheduling Order. Upon completion of the initial pretrial conference, the presiding judge may issue a Uniform Pretrial Scheduling Order setting forth deadlines for joinder of parties, amendment of pleadings, production of expert reports, completion of discovery, and filing of motions; a trial ready date; the requirements for all trial submissions; and if an mediation track case, the deadline for completion of mediation.
(f) Enforcement of Deadlines. The Court shall strictly enforce any deadlines that it establishes in any case management order, and the Court shall not modify these, even upon stipulation of the parties, except upon a showing of good cause.