Jara et al v. Smart & K Construction LLC et al

Filing 33

ORDER: See attached pretrial order. This case is scheduled for a bench trial starting 7/31/2012 10:00 AM in East Courtroom and continuing to 8/1/2012 at 10:00 AM until noon and if necessary, 8/2/2012 at 10:00 AM. The parties' Joint Trial Memorandum is due by 7/12/2012. See attached order for requirements. The final pretrial conference is scheduled for 7/27/2012 at 1:00 PM in East Courtroom. Signed by Judge Donna F. Martinez on 6/18/12. (Constantine, A.)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT
LUIS JARA, et al.,
Plaintiff,
v.
YAROSLAV KOHUT,
Defendant.

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CASE NO. 3:09cv856(DFM)

PRETRIAL ORDER
As discussed in the status conference, trial is scheduled to
begin on July 31, 2012 at 10:00 am in the East Courtroom and will
continue on August 1, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. until noon. If necessary,
the trial will continue August 2, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.
trial to the court, also called a bench trial.

This is a

There is no jury.

The Judge decides the case and issues a written ruling.

In light

of the defendant's pro se status, an addendum is attached regarding
trial procedure.
A final pretrial conference is scheduled for July 27, 2012 at
1:00 p.m. in the East Courtroom.

During the final pretrial

conference, the court will review the parties' proposed evidence
identified in the Joint Trial Memorandum, discussed below.
By July 12, 2012, the parties shall file a Joint Trial
Memorandum.

The Joint Trial Memorandum shall be in the form

required by the District of Connecticut’s Standing Order Regarding
Trial Memoranda in Civil Cases (the "Standing Order"). In addition
to the material required by the Standing Order, the Joint Trial

Memorandum shall include:
a.

Witnesses: See Paragraph 10 of the Standing Order.

For any expert witness, each party shall set forth the opinion to
be expressed, a brief summary of the basis of the opinion and a
list of the materials on which the witness intends to rely.

If a

party objects to all or any part of the anticipated testimony of
any witness, lay or expert, the objection and its grounds shall be
set forth in the Joint Trial Memorandum so that the objection can
be addressed prior to trial.
b.

Exhibits: See Paragraph 11 of the Standing Order.

Each party shall list in the Joint Trial Memorandum the exhibits it
intends to

offer

at trial.

The

plaintiff's

exhibits

defendant's exhibits shall be listed separately.

and

the

Each party's

exhibit list shall denote the exhibit number, a brief description
of the exhibit and shall indicate whether the parties agree that a
particular

exhibit

should

be

admitted

as

evidence

without

objection.

If there is an objection to an exhibit, the proponent

of the exhibit must set forth the basis for admissibility of the
exhibit and the opponent must set forth the basis of the objection.
Except for rebuttal and impeachment, exhibits not listed will not
be admissible at trial without good cause shown.
Prior to the final pretrial conference, each party shall mark
its exhibits with exhibit stickers (which are available upon
request from the courtroom deputy clerk).

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All exhibits shall be

marked numerically and say "Plaintiff" or "Defendant." If there is
more than one plaintiff or defendant, the exhibits shall identify
the party offering the exhibit (e.g., Defendant Smith, Exhibit #1).
If the same exhibit is offered by more than one party, the parties
shall mark only one of the exhibit by placing their respective
exhibit stickers on the one exhibit (e.g., two exhibit stickers on
one document: Plaintiff Jones, Exhibit #2; Defendant Smith Exhibit
#5).

Each

party

shall

prepare

two

courtesy

copies

of

its

documentary exhibits for the court’s use during the hearing.

The

courtesy copies shall be arranged in order in a notebook with tabs
bearing the exhibit number.

Counsel shall retain the original set

of exhibits until the beginning of trial.

Counsel shall bring a

set of the exhibits to the final pretrial conference.
SO

ORDERED

this

18th

day

of

June

2012,

Connecticut.
__________/s/_________________
Donna F. Martinez
United States Magistrate Judge

3

at

Hartford,

Hints for Proceeding as a Pro Se Defendant
Individuals in court cases are generally referred to as
plaintiffs or defendants. The plaintiff is the person bringing the
lawsuit who alleges that a defendant violated a right protected by
law.

The defendant is the person who allegedly violated that

right. The majority of individuals appearing in court, also known
as litigants or parties, are represented by licensed attorneys who
practice law, have appeared in court, and are familiar with court
rules and procedures. Litigants or parties representing themselves
in court without the assistance of a licensed attorney are known as
pro se litigants. The word "pro se" is Latin for "in one’s own
behalf."
The Decision to Proceed Pro Se
If you are considering representing yourself at trial, you
should evaluate carefully the risks associated with proceeding pro
se and educate yourself regarding the potential consequences.
Litigation is extremely time consuming and complex, and the legal
process can be difficult to understand.
Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
This is a trial to the court, also called a bench trial.
a bench trial, there is no jury.

In

The Judge will render a verdict

and issue findings of fact and conclusions of law upon which the
Judge bases the verdict. Fed. R. Civ. P. 52(a).
Courtroom Conduct
Always maintain the proper degree of respect and courtesy when
in the courtroom. Unless the Judge directs you otherwise, observe
the following formalities:
• Be prompt.
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• Stand at the beginning and end of any court session and each
time the Judge enters or leaves the courtroom. Remain standing
until the Judge sits down or has left the courtroom.
• Stand when addressing or being addressed by the Judge.
Always answer the Judge’s questions. Never interrupt the Judge.
• When speaking to the Judge, it is customary to refer to him
or her as "Your Honor."
• Address your remarks to the Judge, not your opponent.
• Stand at the lectern while making your opening statement and
closing argument, as well as when you are examining witnesses.
• The courtroom reporter makes a written record of the trial
(or the proceeding is recorded on an audiotape). Speak slowly,
loudly and clearly. If you do not, you may be asked to repeat
something or slow down.
• Ask the Judge's permission before you approach the bench.
• Do not eat or drink (other than a glass of water at your
table) in the courtroom.
• Do not make any gestures, facial expressions or audible
comments as a sign of approval or disapproval to the testimony of
a witness or to a statement or ruling by the Judge.
Rules of Procedure
If you are going to defend the case against you in federal
court, you must have a basic understanding of the procedural rules
governing your trial. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the
Federal Rules of Evidence and the Local Rules can be found on the
court's website, www.ctd.uscourts.gov.
TRIAL PREPARATION
Theory of the Case
The theory of the case is your position in the case and how
you

intend

to

address

the

evidence

that

will

be

presented.

Developing your theory of the case typically involves several
5

steps:
• Determine the witnesses or documents you intend to use to
prove your case.
• Understand what facts will be disputed and what evidence
your opponent will likely present to put those facts in dispute.
Then,

determine

whether

you

have

grounds

to

object

to

that

evidence, and if not, how you otherwise will attack or challenge
the evidence.
Pretrial Order
Attached is an order for the submission of a pretrial order,
which essentially is a map, or index, of the case. It is prepared
jointly by the parties and contains the essential information of a
case in a non-argumentative, brief and concise format, including:
• a summary of the facts of the case;
• a summary of the claims and defenses of the parties;
• a list of the witnesses each party expects to call to
testify; and
• a list of the documents or other evidence each party expects
to introduce as exhibits, including deposition testimony.
Because the pretrial order is typically filed jointly by the
parties, you must (and the court expects you to) cooperate with
your opponent in its preparation. Often times, counsel for your
adversary will prepare the first draft of the pretrial order and
you can add your sections to it.
In addition to the pretrial order, you will have to submit
copies of

documents

or

other

evidence

the

parties

expect

to

introduce as exhibits.
Unless something extraordinary occurs, you will not be able to
present exhibits or call witnesses at trial if they are not listed
in the pretrial order. Thus, you must be certain that you have
listed all of your potential witnesses and exhibits in the pretrial

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order. You are not, however, obligated to call every witness or
introduce at trial every piece of evidence listed in the pretrial
order.
Order of Proceedings
This is the order in which things will happen if the hearing
goes all the way from start to finish:
1.

Opening statements

2.

The plaintiff's case in chief (witnesses and exhibits)

3.

Your (defense) case in chief

4.

Final arguments.

Opening Statements In opening statements, you and the lawyer for
the plaintiff have the chance to tell the Judge what you expect the
evidence to be. Opening statements are not evidence and are simply
statements given by the opposing sides to give the court a roadmap
of the evidence that the parties anticipate will be presented at
trial.
PRESENTATION OF EVIDENCE
Types of Evidence
Following

opening

statements,

the

evidence to the Judge in a bench trial.

parties

present

their

Evidence is the facts, or

the proof, that the Judge allows a party to present to the court.
Evidence consists primarily of the testimony of witnesses and
documents (written materials, including letters, reports, records
and emails).
Keep
(1)

in

statements

mind
in

several
opening

things

that

statements

and

are

not

closing

evidence:
arguments;

(2) questions to witnesses (rather than the answers); (3) answers
to questions to which the Judge has sustained, or agreed with, a
party's objections; and (4) testimony and documents that the Judge
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has ruled are inadmissible.
Testimony of Witnesses
Plaintiff Puts on Evidence First
The plaintiff presents its side of the case first. After the
opening statements, the plaintiff presents evidence. This is called
the

plaintiff’s

case

in

chief.

or

it

may

It

may

consist

include

only

testimony

of

of

the

plaintiff's

testimony,

other

witnesses.

The plaintiff begins by calling the first witness to

the witness box ("Your Honor, I would like to call as my first
witness, ______"), and proceeds to ask that witness all of its
questions and show the witness any exhibits relevant to his or her
testimony.

This

is

called

a

direct

examination.

When

the

plaintiff's counsel is done with questioning the witness, the
defense (you) can then ask questions of the witness.

This is

called cross examination. It is the defendant's opportunity to ask
that witness questions and show the witness documents related to
the topics covered in the direct examination.
Then, the plaintiff has the opportunity to ask additional
questions about topics covered in cross examination, referred to as
redirect examination. If the plaintiff's counsel asks questions on
redirect examination, the defense (you) will be offered a chance to
ask more questions on recross examination.

No more questioning of

that witness will be allowed after recross examination.
The plaintiff then calls its next witness ("Your Honor, I
would like to call as my next witness, ______"), and the same
process of questioning occurs.
After the plaintiff has presented his evidence, you will have
a chance to call witnesses and present evidence.

This is called

the defense’s case in chief.
If you call a witness to testify, you must ask questions for
the witness to answer. You can’t tell the witness facts while the
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witness is testifying; the witness is to testify to facts in
response to your questions.
If you testify as a witness in this case, you won’t have to
ask questions of yourself. Some judges do require that, so that the
lawyer for the plaintiff will have an opportunity to make an
objection.

However, in this case you can just tell the facts of

the case, but you must tell the court when you are changing topics
— for example, "Now I’m going to talk about when . . . " — so the
lawyer for the plaintiff will have an opportunity to object to a
topic.

Other than not having to ask questions of yourself, your

testimony will have to comply with all the other rules of evidence
and procedure, which means there may be objections raised during
your testimony.

If the court sustains an objection, that means

that you can’t talk about whatever was objected to.

If you don’t

understand what it is you’re not allowed to talk about, ask the
Judge.
Let the court know when you are done with your testimony.

The

court will then ask the lawyer for the plaintiff if there is any
cross examination, and you might be cross examined by the other
side.

If so, you will be given a chance to give more testimony on

redirect examination.
Admission of Evidence
Not all documents or testimony may be introduced as evidence.
The evidence must be admissible (that is, allowed by the Judge to
be introduced as evidence) before the court will consider it. The
admissibility of evidence is determined by the Federal Rules of
Evidence, which set out specific steps and principles that must be
followed before a Judge will allow an exhibit or testimony to be
admitted into evidence. Only evidence that is admitted may be
considered by the Judge in a bench trial in determining who wins
your case.

Therefore, it is critical that you carefully consider
9

every piece of evidence on which you intend to rely to prove your
claims, the objections your opponent might make to the evidence and
how you will respond to those objections so that evidence is
ultimately admitted.
Objections
During the examination of a witness, one side may "object" to
the questioning or testimony of a witness or presentation of
evidence if the attorney feels the testimony or evidence about to
be given should be excluded. If the objection is sustained by the
Judge, that particular testimony or evidence is excluded. If the
objection is overruled by the Judge, the testimony or evidence may
be given. A ruling on an objection may be the basis for appeal;
however, in order to preserve the right to appeal, a party must ask
the

court

recorder

that

that

portion

of

the

trial--the

question/evidence, the objection, and the ruling-- be transcribed
in order to preserve the record for later appeal.
Rebuttal Testimony
After each side has presented its evidence, the plaintiff may
be allowed to present some rebuttal testimony.
Closing Arguments
After all the evidence is complete, you and the lawyer for the
plaintiff

will be

allowed

to

make

final arguments.

In final

argument, you may comment on any evidence that was presented at the
hearing, and may tell the court what you think that evidence means.
You are not allowed to tell the court any new facts about the case
during final argument — the evidence is over by this point.

You

may also tell the court why you believe that the plaintiff did not
prove his case.
Because the plaintiff has the job of convincing the court, the
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plaintiff has the right to open the final arguments and to close
them.

This means that the plaintiff will speak first, then the

defense (you) will speak, and then the plaintiff may speak again to
respond to what you said.

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