Vermont Mutual Insurance Co. v. Natiello et al

Filing 78

ORDER and CALENDAR: A settlement conference is scheduled with Judge Martinez on 6/23/20 at 1:00 pm. See attached order. The conference will be conducted through the Zoom videoconferencing application. Connection information will be emailed to counsel. (Constantine, A.)

CALENDAR AND SETTLEMENT CONFERENCE ORDER
A settlement conference with the undersigned has been
scheduled in this case for June 23, 2020 via Zoom teleconference.
The parties should plan for the conference to continue through the
remainder of the day.
I.

PARTIES WITH FULL AUTHORITY MUST ATTEND.

are hereby ORDERED to be present for the conference.

The parties
If a party is

a legal entity, not an individual, a representative of the party
who is fully authorized to decide all matters pertaining to the
case shall be present at the conference.

The court will not hold a

settlement conference without all parties present.
II.

DISCOVERY.

Prior to the settlement conference, the

parties should have completed the discovery counsel deem necessary
for a productive settlement conference, including initial
disclosures required by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1).
III.

EXCHANGE OF OFFERS AND DEMANDS.

Settlement

conferences are often unproductive unless the parties have
exchanged offers and demands before the conference and made a
serious effort to settle the case on their own.

The parties are

encouraged to commence negotiations prior to the settlement
conference.
IV.

CONFERENCE MEMORANDA.

Not later than 7 days prior to

the conference, counsel shall email ex parte, confidential

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conference memoranda to Judge Martinez.

Memoranda shall be double

spaced in no less than 12 point font and shall not exceed 12 pages.
The following topics shall be included: (A) a list of the claims
and defenses; (B) the legal elements of the claims and defenses;
(C) the evidence in support of the claims and defenses; (D) a
damages analysis,

including an indication of areas of

disagreement1 among the parties, if any; (E) a discussion of the
strengths and weaknesses of the case; (F) the status of the case,
including the discovery remaining and substantive motions filed or
contemplated; (G) a summary of insurance coverage, including
whether the terms of the policy exclude any parties or claims; (H)
a summary of any outstanding liens, including the lien amount, the
lienholder, and any expected compromises of the lien; (I)
settlement negotiations to date; (J) a discussion of the parties’
incentives and impediments to settlement; and (K) a list of all
those who will participate in the conference, including job titles
if pertinent to the case.

Short exhibits may be appended to the ex

parte memorandum with the court’s permission.

Prior to submission

of ex parte memoranda, counsel shall disclose to opposing counsel a
list of all those who will be attending the conference.

Counsel shall confer regarding the damages analysis to
eliminate disagreements, particularly in areas that lend
themselves to arithmetic computation (e.g., back pay, medical
expenses).
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V.

DUE DATES REMAIN IN PLACE. Counsel are reminded that

the scheduling of a settlement conference does not affect existing
deadlines.
SO ORDERED this 11th day of June, 2020 at Hartford,
Connecticut.

_____/s/______________________
Donna F. Martinez
United States Magistrate Judge

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