Dewidar v. National Railroad Passenger Corporation et al

Filing 24

ORDER Granting Joint Motion to Amend Scheduling Order [ECF No. 22 ]. Signed by Magistrate Judge Ruben B. Brooks on 9/5/2017. (jjg)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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NAWAL DEWIDAR,

Case No.: 17cv62 CAB(RBB)
Plaintiff,

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v.

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ORDER GRANTING JOINT
MOTION TO AMEND
SCHEDULING ORDER

NATIONAL RAILROAD PASSENGER
CORPORATION (AMTRAK), et al.,

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[ECF No. 22]

Defendants.

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The Court has reviewed the parties’ “Joint Motion to Amend Scheduling Order”

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[ECF No. 22]. Good cause shown, the Court GRANTS the joint motion and amends the

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Scheduling Order as follows:

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1.

Plaintiff(s) (or the party(ies) having the burden of proof on any claim) shall

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serve on all parties a list of experts whom that party expects to call at trial on or before

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February 12, 2018. Defendant(s) (or the party(ies) defending any claim, counterclaim,

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crossclaim, or third party claim) shall serve on all parties a list of experts whom that party

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expects to call at trial on or before February 12, 2018. On or before February 26, 2018,

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any party may supplement its designation in response to any other party’s designation, so

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long as that party has not previously retained an expert to testify on that subject. Expert

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designations shall include the name, address, and telephone number of each expert, and a
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reasonable summary of the testimony the expert is expected to provide. The list shall also

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include the normal rates the expert charges for deposition and trial testimony.

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The parties must identify any person who may be used at trial to present evidence

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pursuant to Rules 702, 703 or 705 of the Federal Rules of Evidence. This requirement is

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not limited to retained experts.

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Please be advised that failure to comply with this section or any other discovery

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order of the Court may result in the sanctions provided for in Fed. R. Civ. P. 37,

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including a prohibition on the introduction of experts or other designated matters in

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evidence.

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2.

All expert disclosures required by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2) shall be served on

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all parties on or before March 26, 2018. Any contradictory or rebuttal information shall

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be disclosed on or before April 9, 2018. In addition, Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(e)(1) imposes a

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duty on the parties to supplement the expert disclosures made pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P.

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26(a)(2)(B) by the time that pretrial disclosures are due under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(3)

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(discussed below). This disclosure requirement applies to all persons retained or specially

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employed to provide expert testimony, or whose duties as an employee of the party

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regularly involve the giving of expert testimony.

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Please be advised that failure to comply with this section or any other discovery

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order of the Court may result in the sanctions provided for in Fed. R. Civ. P. 37,

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including a prohibition on the introduction of experts or other designated matters in

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evidence.

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3.

All fact discovery shall be completed by all parties by January 15, 2018.

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“Completed” means that all discovery under Rules 30-36 of the Federal Rules of Civil

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Procedure, and discovery subpoenas under Rule 45, must be initiated a sufficient period of

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time in advance of the cut-off date, so that it may be completed by the cut-off date, taking

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into account the times for service, notice and response as set forth in the Federal Rules of

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Civil Procedure. Counsel shall promptly and in good faith meet and confer with

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regard to all discovery disputes in compliance with Local Rule 26.1(a). The Court
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expects counsel to make every effort to resolve all disputes without court intervention

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through the meet and confer process. If the parties reach an impasse on any discovery

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issue, counsel shall file an appropriate motion within the time limit and procedures outlined

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in the undersigned magistrate judge’s chambers rules. A failure to comply in this regard

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will result in a waiver of a party’s discovery issue. Absent an order of the court, no

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stipulation continuing or altering this requirement will be recognized by the court.

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4.

All motions for discovery shall be filed no later than thirty (30) days following

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the date upon which the event giving rise to the discovery dispute occurred. The 30-day

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deadline will not be extended without a prior Court order; counsel cannot unilaterally

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extend the deadline. For example, ongoing meet-and-confer efforts, rolling document

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productions, or supplemental discovery responses do not extend the deadline. A failure to

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comply will bar the party from filing a corresponding discovery motion.

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discovery, the event giving rise to the discovery dispute is the completion of the transcript

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of the affected portion of the deposition. For written discovery, the event giving rise to the

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discovery dispute is the service of the response. All interrogatories, requests for admission,

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and document production requests must be served by November 13, 2017.

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5.

For oral

All expert discovery shall be completed by all parties by May 7, 2018. The

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parties shall comply with the same procedures set forth in the paragraph governing fact

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discovery.

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6.

All pre-trial motions, other than Daubert motions, motions to amend or join

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parties, or motions in limine, shall be filed on or before June 4, 2018. All Daubert motions

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shall be filed on or before June 4, 2018. Counsel for the moving party shall set the motion

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date on the date that is 35 days from the date the motion is filed. Parties intending to file

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a motion shall not contact Judge Bencivengo’s chambers for a hearing date. The parties

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should review Judge Bencivengo’s chambers rules for civil cases for the additional

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requirements for noticed motions before Judge Bencivengo.

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Pursuant to Local Rule 7.1.f.3.c, if an opposing party fails to file opposition

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papers in the time and manner required by Local Rule 7.1.e.2, that failure may
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constitute a consent to the granting of a motion or other request for ruling by the

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Court. Accordingly, all parties are ordered to abide by the terms of Local Rule 7.1.e.2 or

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otherwise face the prospect of any pretrial motion being granted as an unopposed motion

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pursuant to Local Rule 7.1.f.3.c.

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7.

An in-person settlement conference set for October 10, 2017, at 2:00 p.m. is

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vacated and reset for January 9, 2018, at 2:00 p.m. in the chambers of Magistrate Judge

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Ruben B. Brooks. Counsel shall lodge confidential settlement briefs directly to chambers

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by January 2, 2018. All parties are ordered to read and to fully comply with the Chamber

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Rules of the assigned magistrate judge.

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All parties, claims adjusters for insured Defendants and non-lawyer representatives

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with complete authority to enter into a binding settlement, as well as the principal

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attorneys responsible for the litigation, must be present and legally and factually prepared

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to discuss and resolve the case at the mandatory settlement conference and at all in-

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person settlement conferences. Retained outside corporate counsel shall not appear on

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behalf of a corporation as the party representative who has the authority to negotiate and

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enter into a settlement. Failure to attend or obtain proper excuse will be considered

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grounds for sanctions.

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If Plaintiff is incarcerated in a penal institution or other facility, the Plaintiff's

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presence is not required at conferences before Judge Brooks, and the Plaintiff may

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participate by telephone. In that case, defense counsel is to coordinate the Plaintiff's

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appearance by telephone.

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Confidential written settlement statements for the mandatory settlement conference

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shall be lodged with Judge Brooks no later than five court days before the mandatory

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settlement conference. The statements need not be filed with the Clerk of the Court or

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served on opposing counsel. The statements will not become part of the court file and

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will be returned at the end of the conference upon request. Written statements may be

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lodged with Judge Brooks either by mail, by email, or by delivery to the Clerk's Office.

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Any statement submitted should avoid arguing the case. Instead, the statement

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should include a neutral factual statement of the case, identify controlling legal issues,

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and concisely set out issues of liability and damages, including any settlement demands

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and offers to date and address special and general damages where applicable.

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If appropriate, the Court will consider the use of other alternative dispute
resolution techniques.
8.

The parties must comply with the pretrial disclosure requirements of Fed. R.

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Civ. P. 26(a)(3) no later than July 9, 2018. Please be advised that failure to comply with

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this section or any other discovery order of the Court may result in the sanctions

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provided for in Fed. R. Civ. P. 37, including a prohibition on the introduction of

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experts or other designated matters in evidence.

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9.

In jury trial cases before the Honorable Cathy Ann Bencivengo, neither party

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is required to file Memoranda of Contentions of Fact and Law pursuant to Civil Local Rule

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16.1.f.2.

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10.

Counsel shall confer and take the action required by Local Rule 16.1.f.4.a on

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or before July 16, 2018. The parties shall meet and confer and prepare a proposed pretrial

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order containing the following:

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1.
A joint neutral statement to be read to the jury, not in excess of one
page, of the nature of the case and the claims and defenses.
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A list of the causes of action to be tried, referenced to the Complaint
[and Counterclaim if applicable]. For each cause of action, the order shall
succinctly list the elements of the claim, damages and any defenses. A cause
of action in the Complaint [and/or Counterclaim] which is not listed shall be
dismissed with prejudice.
3(a). A list of each witness counsel actually expect to call at trial with a brief
statement, not exceeding four sentences, of the substance of the witnesses’
testimony.
3(b). A list of each expert witness counsel actually expect to call at trial with
a brief statement, not exceeding four sentences, of the substance of the
witnesses’ testimony.
3(c). A list of additional witnesses, including experts, counsel do not expect
to call at this time but reserve the right to call at trial along with a brief
statement, not exceeding four sentences, of the substance of the witnesses’
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testimony.
4(a). A list of all exhibits that counsel actually expect to offer at trial with a
one-sentence description of the exhibit. All exhibits are to be identified
numerically, plaintiff starting with “1” and defendant beginning with an
agreed upon numerical designation.
4(b). A list of all other exhibits that counsel do not expect to offer at this time
but reserve the right to offer if necessary at trial with a one-sentence
description of the exhibit.
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A statement of all facts to which the parties stipulate. This statement
shall be on a separate page and will be read to and provided to the jury.
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A list of all deposition transcripts by page and line, or videotape
depositions by section, that will be offered at trial.
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Counsel will note any objections they have to any other parties’ Fed. R.
Civ. P. 26(a)(3) Pretrial Disclosures.

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The Court encourages the parties to consult with the assigned magistrate judge to work out

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any problems in preparation of the proposed pretrial order. The court will entertain any

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questions concerning the conduct of the trial at the pretrial conference.

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11.

Counsel for the Plaintiff(s) must provide opposing counsel with the proposed

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pretrial order for review and approval and take any other action required by Local Rule

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16.1.f.6.a on or before July 23, 2018. Opposing counsel must communicate promptly with

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plaintiff’s attorney concerning any objections to form or content of the pretrial order, and

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both parties shall attempt promptly to resolve their differences, if any, concerning the order.

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on or before July 30, 2018, and shall be in the form prescribed in Local Rule 16.1.f.6.

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The proposed pretrial order shall be lodged with the district judge’s chambers

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The final Pretrial Conference is scheduled on the calendar of the Honorable

Cathy Ann Bencivengo for August 6, 2018, at 2:00 p.m.

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14.

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8:45 a.m.

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The trial in this matter shall commence on Monday, September 10, 2018, at

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15.

Plaintiff’s counsel shall serve a copy of this order on all parties that enter this

case hereafter.
IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: September 5, 2017

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