Taylor et al v. Honeywell International Inc

Filing 166

ORDER FOR PRETRIAL PREPARATION. Signed by Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong on 6/5/2015. (mklS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 6/5/2015)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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OAKLAND DIVISION

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MARK LEE TAYLOR, et al.,
Plaintiffs,

Case No. 10-cv-04659-SBA

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v.
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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC,
et al.,

ORDER FOR PRETRIAL
PREPARATION

Defendants.

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Pursuant to Rule 16(e) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure ("FRCP"), IT IS
HEREBY ORDERED AS FOLLOWS:

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A.

MANDATORY SETTLEMENT CONFERENCES

All parties are ordered to participate in a mandatory settlement
conference with Magistrate Judge Corley within 60 days of the Case Management
Conference held on June 4, 2015, subject to Judge Corley and the parties' availability. (July
7, 2015 has been tentatively reserved.)
B.

PRETRIAL CONFERENCE

All Counsel who will try the case shall appear for a pretrial conference
on November 18, 2015 at 1:00 p.m. All Counsel shall be fully prepared to discuss all
aspects of the trial. The pretrial conference will take place at 1300 Clay Street, 2nd Floor,
Courtroom 210, Oakland, California, 94612 (located inside the U.S. Bankruptcy
Courthouse). Failure to file the requisite pretrial documents in advance of the pretrial
conference may result in vacation of the pretrial conference and/or the imposition of
sanctions. ALL PARTIES WITH SETTLEMENT AUTHORITY ARE REQUIRED TO
ATTEND THE PRETRIAL CONFERENCE.
C.

PRETRIAL PREPARATION DUE: October 7, 2015

Prior to the date pretrial preparation is due, Counsel shall meet and
confer in good faith in advance of complying with the following pretrial requirements in
order to clarify and narrow the issues for trial, arrive at stipulations of facts, simplify and

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shorten the presentation of proof at trial, and explore possible settlement. In addition,
Counsel shall meet and confer regarding anticipated motions in limine, objections to
evidence, jury instructions, and any other matter which may require resolution by the Court.
The following items 1 through 8 below shall be filed and served by the above-referenced
date.
1.

Joint Pretrial Statement

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Counsel are required to file a pretrial conference statement
containing the following information:

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(a)

The Action

(i) Substance of the Action. A brief description of the
substance of claims and defenses which remain to be decided

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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(ii) Relief Prayed. A detailed statement of all the relief
claimed, particularly itemizing all elements of damages claimed as well as witnesses,
documents or other evidentiary material to be presented concerning the amount of those
damages.
(b)

The Factual Basis of the Action

(i) Undisputed Facts. A plain and concise statement of
all relevant facts not reasonably disputable, as well as which facts parties will stipulate for
incorporation into the trial record without the necessity of supporting testimony or exhibits.

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(ii) Disputed Factual Issues. A plain and concise
statement of all disputed factual issues which remain to be decided.
(iii) Agreed Statement. A statement assessing whether
all or part of the action may be presented upon an agreed statement of facts.
(iv) Stipulations. A statement of stipulations requested or
proposed for pretrial or trial purposes.
(c)

Disputed Legal Issues

(i) Points of Law. Without extended legal argument, a
concise statement of each disputed point of law concerning liability or relief, citing
supporting statutes and decisions. Unless otherwise ordered, parties should cite to briefs
served and lodged setting forth briefly the nature of each party's contentions concerning each
disputed point of law, including procedural and evidentiary issues.
(ii) Proposed Conclusions of law. If the case is to be
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tried without jury, unless otherwise ordered, parties should briefly indicate objections to
proposed conclusions of law lodged with this Court.

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2.

Trial Briefs

Each party shall serve and file a trial brief which shall briefly
state their contentions, the relevant facts to be proven at trial, and the law on the issues
material to the decision.
3.

Findings of Fact

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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In non-jury cases, each party shall serve and lodge with the
Court proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law on all material issues. Findings shall
be brief, clear, written in plain English and free of pejorative language, and argument.
4.

Witnesses

Each party shall serve and file with the Court a list of all persons
who may be called as witnesses. The list shall include a summary of the substance of each
witness' proposed testimony.
5.

Designation of Discovery Excerpts

Each party expecting to use discovery excerpts as part of its case
in chief shall serve and lodge with the Court a statement identifying (1) by witness and page
and line, all deposition testimony and (2) by lodged excerpt, all interrogatory answers and
request for admissions to be used as part of its direct case. Each interrogatory answer
intended to be offered as an exhibit shall be copied separately and marked as an exhibit. The
original of any deposition to be used at trial must be produced at the time of trial, as well as
a copy for the Court. Counsel shall indicate any objections to the use of these materials and
advise the Court that counsel has conferred respecting such objections.

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6.

Jury Instructions

The parties shall file a joint set of proposed jury instructions as
to those instructions on which the parties have reached agreement. As to any disputed
instructions, each party shall separately submit its "proposed" instruction(s) supported by a
memorandum setting forth the authority for its use. Responses or objections to any
"proposed" jury instruction shall be filed no later than the date of the pretrial conference.
All instructions shall be written in plain English which is comprehensible to jurors, concise
and free of argument, and shall be organized in a logical fashion so as to aid jury
comprehension, and are also to be provided on a CD in a word format. The Court's practice
is to utilize, whenever possible, instructions found in the Ninth Circuit Manual of Model
Jury Instructions.

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7.

Jury Voir Dire and Verdict Forms

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Each party shall submit proposed questions for jury voir dire and
a proposed form of verdict.
8.

Exhibits

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Each party shall provide every other party one set of all exhibits,
charts, schedules, summaries and diagrams and other similar documentary materials to be
used at the trial together with a complete list of all such exhibits. The Court requires one
original version of exhibits (as described above) for the Clerk and two copies (one for the
Bench and one for the witness stand). All such versions of the exhibits, including the
originals, should be indexed into a binder for easy and quick reference by all parties. The
first page of each binder should have a copy of the exhibit list (see attached) appropriately
completed with each exhibit description and its designated number. Plaintiffs shall refer to
their exhibits numerically and Defendants shall label theirs alphabetically. Exhibit labels are
also attached for your convenience. Exhibits should be brought to Court on the first day of
trial.
9.

Motions in Limine and Objections to Evidence

Each party anticipating making motion(s) in limine and/or
objection(s) to any testimony or exhibits expected to be offered shall file and serve a
statement briefly identifying each item objected to and the grounds for the objection. The
parties must meet and confer prior to filing any motion in limine and objection to evidence.
The movant shall certify to the Court in its moving papers that it has complied with this
requirement.

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NOTE: All motions in limine submitted by each party shall be
set forth in a single memorandum, not to exceed ten (10) pages in length. Responses to the
motions in limine shall be set forth in a single memorandum, not to exceed ten (10) pages in
length. Reply briefs shall not exceed six (6) pages. No motions in limine will be considered
unless the parties certify that they met and conferred prior to the filing of such motion. Any
request to exceed the page limit must be submitted prior to the deadline for these briefs and
must be supported by a showing of good cause, along with a certification that the applicant
has met and conferred with the opposing party.
(a) Motions/Objections due: October 14, 2015

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(b) Opposition due: October 21, 2015
(c) Reply due: October 28, 2015

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D.

TRIAL DATE

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Trial before the Jury will begin on December 7, 2015, at 8:30 a.m., for
an estimated 8 trial days, or as soon thereafter as the Court may designate. The parties are
advised that they must be prepared to go to trial on a trailing basis. The trial will take place
at 1300 Clay Street, 2nd Floor, Courtroom 210, Oakland, California, 94612 (located inside
the U.S. Bankruptcy Courthouse). The Court's trial hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.,
with two fifteen-minute breaks, on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On the first
day of trial all parties are required to have someone in Court with full Settlement
Authority.
E.

TRANSCRIPTS

If transcripts will be requested during or immediately after the trial,
arrangements must be made with the Court Reporter Coordinator (Telephone No. 510-6373534) at least one week prior to the commencement of trial commences.
F.

STATUS AND DISCOVERY CONFERENCES

Any party desiring to confer with the Court may, upon notice to all
other parties, arrange a conference through the courtroom deputy (Telephone No. 415-5224158). Conferences may be conducted telephonically, upon request (preferably in writing).

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G.

SANCTIONS

Failure to comply with this order may result in the imposition of
sanctions pursuant to FRCP 16(f).
IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: June 5, 2015

____________________________________
SAUNDRA BROWN ARMSTRONG
United States District Judge

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