Schudel et al v. Miller et al

Filing 102

MINUTE ORDER striking 100 Motion to Compel and Request for Sanctions. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that neither party shall file a contested discovery motion until after complying with the steps for following the Magistrate Judge's discovery disp ute procedure, as stated and set forth in the attached minute order. Warning: Filing a disputed discovery motion without permission from the court will result in the motion being stricken, and may result in the imposition of sanctions. To the extent that these procedures conflict with the Local Rules of the Court, these procedures take priority over the Local Rules. By Magistrate Judge Kristen L. Mix on 8/21/13.(mjgsl, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO
Civil Action No. 12-cv-01864-REB-KLM
JEFFREY SCHUDEL,
Plaintiff,
v.
LA SALLE POLICE OFFICER DAVID MILLER, in his individual and official capacities,
LA SALLE POLICE OFFICE VICTOR ERAZO, in his individual and official capacities, and
DALE PARRISH, ESQ.,
Defendants.
_____________________________________________________________________
MINUTE ORDER
_____________________________________________________________________
ENTERED BY MAGISTRATE JUDGE KRISTEN L. MIX
This matter is before the Court on the LaSalle Defendants’ opposed Motion to
Compel and Request for Sanctions [Docket No. 100; Filed August 16, 2013] (the
“Motion”). The LaSalle Defendants seek an order compelling Plaintiff, who now proceeds
in this lawsuit as a pro se litigant, to produce responses to written discovery. The LaSalle
Defendants further seek an order granting sanctions against Plaintiff for his failure to timely
produce his responses. However, the LaSalle Defendants have failed to follow the
undersigned’s discovery dispute procedures, which require the parties to jointly contact the
Court by telephone should discovery disputes arise that the parties are unable to resolve
on their own. See Scheduling Order [#90] at 5; Order Setting Scheduling/Planning
Conference [#5] at 2. Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Motion [#100] is STRICKEN.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that neither party shall file a contested discovery motion
until after complying with the steps for following the Magistrate Judge’s discovery dispute
procedure, as stated below:
Step 1:

Counsel and/or pro se parties meaningfully confer regarding one or more
discovery disputes pursuant to Local Rule 7.1A. Counsel may choose to
confer about only one dispute at a time or several disputes at once. This
decision is up to counsel, not the Court.

Step 2:

If discovery disputes are not resolved, counsel and/or pro se parties then
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agree on a mutually convenient time to call the Court for a discovery hearing
regarding all disputes about which they have fully conferred but failed to
reach agreement. Call 303-335-2770.
No party or attorney can insist on contacting the Court for a discovery
hearing at a time when another party or attorney is not available. If a party or
an attorney is not available for a conference call to the Court for a discovery
hearing when contacted by an opposing party or counsel, s/he must provide
the opposing party or counsel with alternate dates and times to contact the
Court. This eliminates the possibility that one party will have an unfair
advantage over another in preparation for a discovery hearing.
The Court is not responsible for assuring that multiple counsel for the same
party are on the line for a telephone hearing. The Court requires only one
attorney of record on the line for each party involved in the dispute. If counsel
for a party want co-counsel for the same party to participate in the telephone
hearing, they are responsible for ensuring that co-counsel are available to
participate on the date and time chosen by them for the hearing.
The Court will not continue hearings based on the sudden unavailability of
co-counsel for a party. As long as each party involved in the dispute is
represented by at least one attorney of record, the hearing will proceed.
Step 3:

When counsel and/or pro se parties call the Court for the discovery hearing,
the judge’s law clerks will ask counsel questions relating to the nature of the
dispute. The law clerks will consult with the judge as necessary. If the judge
determines that any documents are required for review prior to the hearing,
counsel and/or pro se parties will be instructed to email such documents to
the Court’s chambers, and the hearing will be set at a mutually convenient
date and time in the future.

Step 4:

If no documents are necessary for review and the judge is immediately
available, the call will be transferred to the courtroom and the hearing will be
conducted. If the judge determines that the matter is complex and briefing is
required, the judge will set a briefing schedule. If the judge is not immediately
available, the hearing will be set at a mutually convenient date and time in the
future.

Warning:

Filing a disputed discovery motion without permission from the court
will result in the motion being stricken, and may result in the imposition
of sanctions. To the extent that these procedures conflict with the
Local Rules of the Court, these procedures take priority over the Local
Rules.

Dated: August 21, 2013
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