(PC) Herrick v. Liddell et al

Filing 18

ORDER REFERRING CASE TO POST-SCREENING ADR PROJECT AND STAYING CASE FOR 120 DAYS signed by Magistrate Judge Kendall J. Newman on 11/18/2020. The assigned Deputy Attorney General shall contact the Courtroom Deputy within 30 days to schedule a settlement conference. Each party shall submit a confidential settlement conference statement at least 7 days prior to the conference in accordance with this order. If settlement is reached, the parties shall file a Notice of Settlement.(Yin, K)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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DOUGLAS EUGENE HERRICK,

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Plaintiff,

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No. 2:20-cv-0759 KJN P

v.
M. LIDDELL, et al.,

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ORDER REFERRING CASE TO POSTSCREENING ADR PROJECT AND
STAYING CASE FOR 120 DAYS

Defendants.

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Plaintiff is a state prisoner, proceeding without counsel. On November 16, 2020,

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defendant Liddell filed an answer to plaintiff’s first amended complaint.
The undersigned is referring all post-screening civil rights cases filed by pro se inmates to

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the Post-Screening ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) Project in an effort to resolve such

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cases more expeditiously and less expensively. Defense counsel from the Office of the California

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Attorney General has agreed to participate in this pilot project. No defenses or objections shall be

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waived by their participation.

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As set forth in the screening order, plaintiff has stated a potentially cognizable civil rights

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claim. Thus, the court stays this action for a period of 120 days to allow the parties to investigate

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plaintiff’s claims, meet and confer, and then participate in a settlement conference.

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There is a presumption that all post-screening civil rights cases assigned to the

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undersigned will proceed to settlement conference.1 However, if after investigating plaintiff’s

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claims and speaking with plaintiff, and after conferring with defense counsel’s supervisor,

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defense counsel in good faith finds that a settlement conference would be a waste of resources,

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defense counsel may move to opt out of this pilot project.

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Within thirty days, the assigned Deputy Attorney General shall contact the Courtroom

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Deputy, Alexandra Waldrop, at [phone], to schedule the settlement conference. If

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difficulties arise in scheduling the settlement conference due to the court’s calendar, the parties

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may seek an extension of the initial 120 day stay.

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Once the settlement conference is scheduled, at least seven days prior to conference, the

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parties shall submit to the assigned settlement judge a confidential settlement conference

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statement. The parties’ confidential settlement conference statement shall include the following:

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(a) names and locations of the parties; (b) a short statement of the facts and alleged damages; (c) a

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short procedural history; (d) an analysis of the risk of liability, including a discussion of the

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efforts made to investigate the allegations; and (e) a discussion of the efforts that have been made

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to settle the case.

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In accordance with the above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

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1. This action is stayed for 120 days to allow the parties an opportunity to settle their

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dispute before a responsive pleading is filed, or the discovery process begins. Except as provided

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herein or by subsequent court order, no other pleadings or other documents may be filed in this

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case during the stay of this action. The parties shall not engage in formal discovery, but the

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parties may elect to engage in informal discovery.

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2. Within thirty days from the date of this order, the assigned Deputy Attorney General

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shall contact this court’s Courtroom Deputy, Alexandra Waldrop, at [phone], to schedule

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the settlement conference.

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3. At least seven days prior to the settlement conference, each party shall submit a
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If the case does not settle, the court will set a date for the filing of a responsive pleading at the
conference.
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confidential settlement conference statement, as described above, to the judge assigned for

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settlement.

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4. If a settlement is reached at any point during the stay of this action, the parties shall file
a Notice of Settlement in accordance with Local Rule 160.
5. The parties remain obligated to keep the court informed of their current address at all

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times during the stay and while the action is pending. Any change of address must be reported

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promptly to the court in a separate document captioned for this case and entitled “Notice of

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Change of Address.” See L.R. 182(f).

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Dated: November 18, 2020

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herr0759.adr.post.waiver

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