OSAGE TRIBE OF INDIANS v. USA

Filing 294

ORDER regarding ex parte letter sent to chambers Signed by Judge Emily C. Hewitt. (nag)

OSAGE TRIBE OF INDIANS v. USA

Doc. 294

In the United States Court of Federal Claims
N o . 99-550 L (in to which has been consolidated No. 00-169 L) (E -F ile d : March 10, 2008) _________________________________________ T H E OSAGE TRIBE OF INDIANS O F OKLAHOMA, ) ) ) )

) Plaintiff, ) v. ) ) T H E UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ) ) Defendant. ) ) _________________________________________ ) ORDER B e f o re the court is an envelope - opened by clerical personnel but with the c o n te n ts remaining in the envelope - addressed to Judge Hewitt. The return address on th e letter states, after the name of the person whom the court assumes to be the sender, the w o r d s "Osage Member Headright owner." The front of the envelope also contains a m e s s a g e , which reads, in full, "Urgent - prior to your Decision on Osage Case." T h e Clerk of the Court shall return the letter to the sender with a copy of this O rd e r. The sender is advised that the court is unable to receive or consider "ex parte c o m m u n ica tio n s" from a party to any pending matter. "Ex parte communication" is d e f in e d as "[a] generally prohibited communication between counsel and the court when o p p o sing counsel is not present." Black's Law Dictionary 597 (7th ed. 1999). The court u n d e rs ta n d s the ex parte communication rule to apply as well to communications made by th e party itself and/or any person on behalf of a party. PPG Indus., Inc. v. BASF Corp., 1 3 4 F.R.D. 118, 121 (W.D. Pa. 1990) (holding that ex parte contact is forbidden when the c o m m u n ica tio n is made by a person on behalf of a party); see also Elec. Power Supply A s s 'n v. Fed. Energy Regulatory Comm'n, 391 F.3d 1255, 1266 (D.C. Cir. 2004) (h o ld in g that a government agency cannot amend its ex parte regulations to allow for c o m m u n ic a tio n s between approved market monitors and agency decisional staff even w h e n the market monitor is not a party or appearing on behalf of a party).

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IT IS SO ORDERED. s/ Emily C. Hewitt EMILY C. HEWITT Judge

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