Local Rule LR 7: MOTIONS AND OTHER REQUESTS FOR COURT ACTION

LR 7 MOTIONS AND OTHER REQUESTS FOR COURT ACTION a. Motion. The term "motion," as used in the Local Rules, includes any application or request for court action.

b. Form of Motions and Filing Requirements.

1. All motions must be in writing (see LR 1(m)) and must be served upon all other parties.

2. A motion must contain citations to all statutes or rules under which the motion is being made.

3. A brief must be filed as an electronic attachment to the motion it supports under the same docket entry as the motion. If a brief is not filed on the same day as the motion it supports, it may be stricken by the court as untimely.

4. If a motion is premised upon a Federal Rule of Civil or Criminal Procedure that permits consideration of facts not appearing of record, then the moving party must electronically attach to the motion, and file under the same docket entry as the motion, any affidavits, other sworn materials, photographs, or documentary evidence upon which the moving party relies.

c. Oral Argument. A motion will be decided without oral argument unless the court orders otherwise. A request for oral argument must be noted separately in both the caption and the conclusion of the motion or resistance to the motion, and must be supported by a showing of good cause.

d. Briefs on Motions. For every motion, the moving party must prepare a brief containing a statement of the grounds for the motion and citations to the authorities upon which the moving party relies.

No brief is required for the following motions:

1. To amend a scheduling order and discovery plan;

2. To extend a deadline or continue any proceeding before the court;

3. For permission to file a brief longer than the length prescribed in the Local Rules;

4. For appointment of a next friend or guardian ad litem;

5. To compel discovery responses when no responses have been made (but the movant must comply with the requirements of Local Rule 37);

6. To substitute or withdraw counsel;

7. To substitute a party;

8. To amend or supplement a motion, brief, or other document;

9. To seal documents.

e. Resistances to Motions. Each party resisting a motion must, within 14 days after the motion is served, file a resistance in the form of a brief containing a statement of the grounds for resisting the motion and citations to the authorities upon which the resisting party relies, except a resistance to a motion for summary judgment must be filed in accordance with the deadline and procedures prescribed in Local Rule 56.

If the resistance requires the consideration of facts not appearing of record and the applicable Federal Rule of Civil or Criminal Procedure permits consideration of facts not appearing of record, the resisting party must electronically attach to the resistance, and file under the same docket entry as the resistance, any affidavits, other sworn materials, photographs, or documentary evidence upon which the moving party relies.

A resistance to a motion may not include a separate motion or a cross-motion by the responding party. Any separate motion or cross-motion must be filed separately as a new motion.

If a motion appears to be noncontroversial, or if circumstances otherwise warrant, the court may elect to rule on a motion without waiting for a resistance or response. Any party may, within 7 days after any such order is entered, file a motion for reconsideration of the order.

f. Unresisted Motions. If no timely resistance to a motion is filed, the motion may be granted without notice. If a party does not intend to resist a motion, the party is encouraged to file promptly a statement indicating the motion will not be resisted.

g. Reply Briefs. Ordinarily, reply briefs are unnecessary, and the court may elect to rule on a motion without waiting for a reply brief. However, the moving party may, within 7 days after a resistance to a motion is served, file a reply brief, not more than 5 pages in length, to assert newly-decided authority or to respond to new and unanticipated arguments made in the resistance. In the reply brief, the moving party must not reargue points made in the opening brief. A reply brief may be filed without leave of court.

h. Length of Briefs. Except for trial briefs, briefs on the merits in Social Security benefits cases, and briefs supporting or resisting habeas corpus applications, a brief may not be more than 20 pages in length unless some other page limitation is specifically prescribed in the Local Rules. A Table of Contents, Table of Authorities and/or signature block is not counted in the page limit.

A party may request leave to file a brief longer than the length prescribed in the Local Rules by filing a motion containing a statement demonstrating good cause for the proposed length. The brief must be electronically attached to the motion and filed under the same docket entry, and if the motion is granted, the Clerk of Court will detach and docket the brief.

i. Expedited Relief. A request for expedited relief must appear in the caption of the document. Counsel must alert the assigned federal judge that expedited relief is being requested by contacting the judge's chambers by phone or email.

j. Motions to Continue or to Extend a Deadline. A motion to continue a scheduled matter, or to extend a deadline, must include the following information:

1. The existing date or deadline sought to be continued or extended;

2. The new date or deadline requested;

3. Whether the scheduled matter or deadline has been continued or extended previously, and if so, (a) the original date or deadline, (b) the number of times the scheduled matter or deadline has been continued or extended previously, and (c) how many of the previous continuances or extensions were at the movant's request;

4. All other existing court-imposed deadlines; and 5. The date of any scheduled final pretrial conference and trial.

k. Required Statement of Other Parties' Positions in Non-Dispositive Motions. All non-dispositive motions must contain a representation that counsel for the moving party personally has conferred in good faith with counsel for all other parties and any pro se parties concerning the motion, and a statement of whether or not the other parties consent to the motion. Non-dispositive motions include, inter alia: (1) motions to continue a scheduled matter or to extend a deadline; (2) motions to amend pleadings; (3) motions to add or substitute parties; and (4) motions for remand in Social Security appeals pursuant to sentence six of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). If the moving party has not conferred with another party, the motion must contain a description of the efforts made to consult with the party and an explanation of why the efforts were unsuccessful.