Washington v. Garcia et al

Filing 40

ORDER DENYING Plaintiff's Motion to Appear for the Settlement Conference By Video or Telephone 37 , signed by Magistrate Judge Sheila K. Oberto on 1/6/17. (Hellings, J)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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MICHAEL A. WASHINGTON,

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Plaintiff,
v.
G. GARCIA, et al.,

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Defendants.

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Case No.: 1:15-cv-01805-LJO-SAB (PC)
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO
APPEAR FOR THE SETTLEMENT
CONFERENCE BY VIDEO OR TELEPHONE
[Doc. 37]

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Plaintiff Michael A. Washington is appearing pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil rights

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action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. This case is currently set for a settlement conference before the

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undersigned on January 10, 2017.

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On December 27, 2016, Plaintiff filed a motion requesting to appear at the settlement

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conference by video or telephone. (Doc. 37.) For the reasons set forth below, Plaintiff’s request will

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be denied.

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Generally, the Court allows inmates to appear telephonically for all pretrial proceedings. The

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Court finds, however, that settlement conferences are not productive without the ability to have face to

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face contact with the participants. As such, the Court requires parties to personally appear for

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settlement conferences.

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Plaintiff requests that he be allowed to appear by video conference or telephone. Due to
importance of face to face contact and issues that may arise with video conferencing and telephone
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systems, the parties will be required to attend the settlement conference in person. The Court notes,

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however, that a settlement conference is voluntary in this case. If Plaintiff chooses not to physically

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appear at the settlement conference, the parties may conduct settlement discussion without the

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involvement of the Court.
Based on the foregoing, Plaintiff’s motion to appear at the settlement conference by video

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conference or telephone is DENIED.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:

January 6, 2017

/s/

Sheila K. Oberto

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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