Wolff v. Ford Motor Company et al
Filing
23
PRETRIAL ORDER NO. 1: CASE SCHEDULE. Signed by Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley on 11/17/2022. Pretrial Conference set for 8/1/2024 at 2:00 p.m. in San Francisco, Courtroom 08, 19th Floor before Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley. Jury Selection set for 8/19/2024 at 8:30 a.m. in San Francisco, Courtroom 08, 19th Floor before Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley. Jury Trial set for 8/19/2024 to 8/30/2024 t 8:30 a.m. (10-days) in San Francisco, Courtroom 08, 19th Floor before Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley. (ahm, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 11/17/2022)
Case 3:22-cv-04672-JSC Document 23 Filed 11/17/22 Page 1 of 7
1
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
2
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
3
KENNETH WOLFF,
4
Plaintiff,
5
v.
6
FORD MOTOR COMPANY,
7
Case No. 22-cv-04672-JSC
PRETRIAL ORDER NO. 1: CASE
SCHEDULE
Defendant.
8
9
Following the Initial Case Management Conference held on November 17, 2022, IT IS
United States District Court
Northern District of California
10
11
ORDERED THAT:
12
I.
CASE MANAGEMENT SCHEDULE
13
Deadline to Move to Amend Pleadings:
February 9, 2023
14
Deadline to Complete Private Mediation:
November 15, 2023
15
Fact Discovery Cut-Off:
November 15, 2023
16
Expert Witness Disclosures:
January 10, 2024
17
Rebuttal Expert Witness Disclosures:
January 24, 2024
18
Expert Discovery Cutoff:
February 29, 2024
19
Deadline for Hearing Dispositive Motions:
April 25, 2024
20
The parties are referred to the Court’s ADR program for a mediation to occur within a 120
21
days. The parties may stipulate to private mediation by submitting a stipulation with the name of
22
the mediator and a date for the mediation that occurs by that deadline.
23
A further Case Management Conference is scheduled for June 29, 2023 at 1:30 p.m. via
24
Zoom video. An updated Joint Case Management Conference Statement is due June 22, 2023.
25
The statement must identify the parties’ selected private mediator and the date of mediation (to
26
occur before November 15, 2023).
27
II.
28
DISCOVERY DEADLINES
All depositions must be noticed at least 30 days before the close of fact discovery. Any
Case 3:22-cv-04672-JSC Document 23 Filed 11/17/22 Page 2 of 7
1
discovery-related letter briefs or motions are due one week after the close of fact discovery. The
2
same rules apply to expert discovery. See N.D. Cal. Civ. L.R. 37-3.
3
III.
A.
4
5
8
9
10
United States District Court
Northern District of California
11
12
Jury trial will begin on August 19, 2024, at 8:30 a.m., in Courtroom 8, 19th Floor,
U.S. District Court, 450 Golden Gate, San Francisco, California.
B.
6
7
TRIAL DATE
IV.
The Court is expecting the length of the trial to not exceed 10 court days.
PRETRIAL CONFERENCE
A Final Pretrial Conference shall be held on August 1, 2024, at 2:00 p.m., in Courtroom 8,
19th Floor. Lead trial counsel for each party shall attend.
A.
At least seven days prior to date of the Final Pretrial Conference the parties shall do
the following:
1.
In lieu of preparing a Joint Pretrial Conference Statement, the parties shall
13
meet and confer in person, and then prepare and file a jointly signed Proposed Final Pretrial Order
14
that contains: (a) a brief description of the substance of claims and defenses which remain to be
15
decided; (b) a statement of all relief sought; (c) all stipulated facts; (d) a joint exhibit list in
16
numerical order, including a brief description of the exhibit and Bates numbers, a blank column
17
for when it will be offered into evidence, a blank column for when it may be received into
18
evidence, and a blank column for any limitations on its use; and (e) each party’s separate witness
19
list for its case-in-chief witnesses (including those appearing by deposition), including, for all such
20
witnesses (other than party plaintiffs or defendants), a short statement of the substance of his/her
21
testimony and, separately, what, if any, non-cumulative testimony the witness will offer. For each
22
witness, state an hour/minute time estimate for the direct examination (only). Items (d) and (e)
23
should be submitted as appendices to the proposed order. The proposed order should also state
24
which issues, if any, are for the Court to decide, rather than the jury.
25
2.
File a joint set of proposed instructions on substantive issues of law
26
arranged in a logical sequence. If undisputed, an instruction shall be identified as “Stipulated
27
Instruction No. ____ Re ___________,” with the blanks filled in as appropriate. If disputed, each
28
version of the instruction shall be inserted together, back to back, in their logical place in the
2
Case 3:22-cv-04672-JSC Document 23 Filed 11/17/22 Page 3 of 7
1
overall sequence. Each such disputed instruction shall be identified as, for example, “Disputed
2
Instruction No. ____ Re ____________ Offered by _________________,” with the blanks filled
3
in as appropriate. All disputed versions of the same basic instruction shall bear the same number.
4
Any modifications to a form instruction must be plainly identified. If a party does not have a
5
counter version and simply contends that no such instruction in any version should be given, then
6
that party should so state (and explain why) on a separate page inserted in lieu of an alternate
7
version. With respect to form preliminary instructions, general instructions, or concluding
8
instructions, please simply cite to the numbers of the requested instructions in the current edition
9
of the Ninth Circuit Model Jury Instructions. Other than citing the numbers, the parties shall not
10
include preliminary, general, or concluding instructions in the packet.
3.
United States District Court
Northern District of California
11
12
instructions, if any, organized by instruction number.
4.
13
14
File a separate memorandum of law in support of each party’s disputed
File a joint set of proposed voir dire questions supplemented as necessary
by separate requests.
15
5.
File trial briefs on any controlling issues of law.
16
6.
File proposed verdict forms, joint or separate.
17
7.
File and serve any objections to exhibits.
18
8.
File a joint simplified Statement of the Case to be read to the jury during
19
voir dire as part of the proposed jury instructions. Unless the case is extremely complex, this
20
statement should not exceed one page.
21
B.
Any motions in limine shall be submitted as follows: at least twenty (20) calendar
22
days before the conference, the moving party shall serve, but not file, the opening brief. At least
23
ten (10) calendar days before the conference, the responding party shall serve the opposition.
24
There will be no reply. When the oppositions are received, the moving party should collate the
25
motion and the opposition together, back-to-back, and then file the paired sets at least seven (7)
26
calendar days before the conference. Each motion should be presented in a separate memorandum
27
and properly identified, for example, “Plaintiff’s Motion in Limine No. 1 to Exclude . . . .” Each
28
party is limited to bringing five motions in limine. The parties are encouraged to stipulate where
3
Case 3:22-cv-04672-JSC Document 23 Filed 11/17/22 Page 4 of 7
1
possible, for example, as to the exclusion of witnesses from the courtroom. Each motion should
2
address a single, separate topic, and contain no more than seven pages of briefing per side.
C.
3
4
the day after filing. The Joint Proposed Final Pretrial Order, jury instructions, and verdict form
5
shall be submitted via e-mail as attachments to JSCpo@cand.uscourts.gov. The Court requests that
6
all hard-copy submissions be three-hole-punched.
7
V.
8
9
10
11
United States District Court
Northern District of California
Hard-copy courtesy copies of the above documents shall be delivered by NOON
PRETRIAL ARRANGEMENTS
A.
Should a daily transcript and/or real-time reporting be desired, the parties shall
make arrangements with Rick Duvall, Supervisor of the Court Reporting Services, at
(415) 522-2079, at least ten (10) calendar days prior to the trial date.
B.
During trial, counsel may wish to use overhead projectors, laser-disk/computer
12
graphics, poster blow-ups, models, or specimens of devices. Equipment should be shared by all
13
counsel to the maximum extent possible. The Court provides no equipment other than an easel.
14
The United States Marshal requires a court order to allow equipment into the courthouse. For
15
electronic equipment, parties should be prepared to maintain the equipment or have a technician
16
handy at all times. The parties shall tape extension cords to the carpet for safety. The parties may
17
work with the deputy clerk, Ada Means (415-522-2015), on all courtroom-layout issues.
18
SCHEDULING
19
Trial will be conducted from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 or 3:00 p.m., depending on the availability
20
of witnesses, Monday through Friday. Counsel must arrive by 8:15 a.m., or earlier as needed, for
21
any matters to be heard out of the presence of the jury. The jury will be called at 8:30 a.m.
22
THE JURY
23
The Jury Office asks prospective jurors to complete an online jury questionnaire in
24
advance of their summons date. The standard questionnaire available on the Northern District’s
25
website at http://www.cand.uscourts.gov/wp-content/uploads/attorneys/Internet-version_Standard-
26
CAND-Trial_SurveyMonkey_3-2022.pdf. The parties are allowed to add 10 case specific
27
questions to the questionnaire. The parties shall meet and confer, and to the extent possible, file a
28
joint list of proposed questions to add to the questionnaire. To the extent that the parties cannot
4
United States District Court
Northern District of California
Case 3:22-cv-04672-JSC Document 23 Filed 11/17/22 Page 5 of 7
1
agree, they may submit separate proposed questions from which the Court will choose 10. The
2
parties joint or separate submissions are due 21 days before trial. The Court will provide the
3
parties with the survey responses the Friday before trial.
4
In civil cases, there are no alternate jurors and the jury is selected as follows: Eighteen to
5
twenty jurors are called to fill the jury box and the row in front of the bar, and are given numbers
6
(1 through 20). The remaining potential jurors will be seated in the public benches. Hardship
7
excuses will usually be considered at this point. Counsel may conduct a limited voir dire.
8
Challenges for cause will then be addressed out of the presence of the potential jurors. The Court
9
will consider whether to fill in the seats of the stricken jurors. If so, questions will be asked of the
10
additional jurors and cause motions as to them will be considered. After a short recess, each side
11
may exercise its allotment of peremptory challenges out of the presence of the potential jurors.
12
The eight (or such other size as will constitute the jury) surviving the challenge process with the
13
lowest numbers become the final jury. If more (or fewer) than eight jurors are to be seated, then
14
the starting number will be adjusted. So too if more than a total of six peremptories are allowed.
15
Once the jury selection is completed, the jurors’ names will be read again and they will be seated
16
in the jury box and sworn. The Court may alter this procedure in its discretion and after
17
consultation with the parties.
WITNESSES
18
19
At the close of each trial day, all counsel shall exchange a list of witnesses for the
20
next two full court days and the exhibits that will be used during direct examination (other than
21
for impeachment of an adverse witness). Within 24 hours of such notice, all other counsel shall
22
provide any objections to such exhibits and shall provide a list of all exhibits to be used with the
23
same witness on cross-examination (other than for impeachment). The first notice shall be
24
exchanged prior to the first day of trial. All such notices shall be provided in writing.
EXHIBITS
25
26
A.
Prior to the Final Pretrial Conference, counsel must meet and confer in person to
27
consider all exhibit numbers and objections and to eliminate duplicate exhibits and confusion over
28
the precise exhibit.
5
Case 3:22-cv-04672-JSC Document 23 Filed 11/17/22 Page 6 of 7
1
B.
Use numbers only, not letters, for exhibits, preferably the same numbers as were
2
used in depositions. Blocks of numbers should be assigned to fit the need of the case (e.g.,
3
Plaintiff has 1 to 100, Defendant A has 101 to 200, Defendant B has 201 to 300, etc.). A single
4
exhibit should be marked only once. If the plaintiff has marked an exhibit, then the defendant
5
should not re-mark the exact document with another number. Different versions of the same
6
document, e.g., a copy with additional handwriting, must be treated as different exhibits with
7
different numbers. To avoid any party claiming “ownership” of an exhibit, all exhibits shall be
8
marked and referred to as “Trial Exhibit No. _____,” not as “Plaintiff’s Exhibit” or “Defendant’s
9
Exhibit.”
10
C.
The exhibit tag shall be in the following form:
United States District Court
Northern District of California
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
Counsel preferably will make the tag up in a color that will stand out (yet still allow for
photocopying), but that is not essential. Place the tag on or near the lower right-hand corner or, if a
photograph, on the back. Counsel should fill in the tag but leave the last two spaces blank. The
parties must jointly prepare a single set of all trial exhibits that will be the official record set to be
used with the witnesses and on appeal. Each exhibit must be tagged, three-hole-punched, separated
with a label divider identifying the exhibit number, and placed in 3-ring binders. Spine labels
should indicate the numbers of the exhibits that are in the binders. Each set of exhibit binders
should be marked as “Original.” Deposit the exhibits with the deputy clerk seven (7) days before
the Pretrial Conference.
D.
Counsel must consult with each other and with the deputy clerk at the end of each
6
Case 3:22-cv-04672-JSC Document 23 Filed 11/17/22 Page 7 of 7
1
trial day and compare notes as to which exhibits are in evidence and any limitations thereon. If
2
there are any differences, counsel should bring them promptly to the Court’s attention.
3
The parties shall provide the Court with one official set of the record exhibits seven
4
(7) days before the Pretrial Conference. Each exhibit must be separated with a label divider
5
identifying the exhibit number. Spine labels should indicate the numbers of the exhibits that are in
6
the binders. At trial, the parties shall provide individual witness exhibit binders which contain all
7
the exhibits the parties expect to use with the witness. The parties shall provide two copies of each
8
witness binder: one for the witness and one for the Court.
9
10
11
United States District Court
Northern District of California
E.
F.
Before the closing arguments, counsel must confer with the deputy clerk to make
sure the exhibits in evidence are in good order.
G.
Exhibit notebooks for the jury will not be permitted without prior permission from
12
the Court. Publication must be by poster blow-up, overhead projection, or such other method as is
13
allowed in the circumstances. It is permissible to highlight, circle or underscore in the
14
enlargements as long as it is clear that it was not on the original.
CHARGING CONFERENCE
15
16
As the trial progresses and the evidence is heard, the Court will fashion a comprehensive
17
set of jury instructions to cover all issues actually being tried. Prior to the close of the evidence,
18
the Court will provide a draft final charge to the parties. After a reasonable period for review, one
19
or more charging conferences will be held at which each party may object to any passage, ask for
20
modifications, or ask for additions. Any instruction request must be renewed specifically at the
21
conference or it will be deemed waived, whether or not it was requested prior to trial. If, however,
22
a party still wishes to request an omitted instruction after reviewing the Court’s draft, then it must
23
affirmatively re-request it at the charging conference in order to give the Court a fair opportunity
24
to correct any error. Otherwise, as stated, the request will be deemed abandoned or waived.
25
26
27
28
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: November 17, 2022
______________________________________
_____
_ _____
__________
____
__________________
_ __
JACQUELINE
C UE
CQ
ELI
LINE SCOTT CORLEY
United
it d States
St t District
Di t i t Judge
J d
7
Disclaimer: Justia Dockets & Filings provides public litigation records from the federal appellate and district courts. These filings and docket sheets should not be considered findings of fact or liability, nor do they necessarily reflect the view of Justia.
Why Is My Information Online?