Eaton v. Raven Transport Co., Inc. et al
Filing
19
ORDER directing compliance of pro se litigant with the provisions of this Order, as well as the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Local Rules of the Middle District of Florida, and any applicable statutes and regulations. Signed by Magistrate Judge Thomas E. Morris on 3/16/2012. (DLC)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
JACKSONVILLE DIVISION
JAMES C. EATON,
Plaintiff,
vs.
CASE NO. 3:11-cv-168-J-34TEM
RAVEN TRANSPORT CO., INC.,
et al.,
Defendants.
__________________________________
ORDER
This matter is before the Court sua sponte. Review of the record reveals Plaintiff
James C. Eaton is proceeding in the instant case on a pro se basis. Therefore, the Court
will take the opportunity to inform Plaintiff of some, but not all, of the procedural rules with
which he must comply. The Court reminds Plaintiff of these obligations because a pro se
litigant is subject to the same law and rules of court as a litigant who is represented
by counsel, including the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (“Fed. R. Civ. P.”), and the
Local Rules of the Middle District of Florida.1 Moon v. Newsome, 863 F.2d 835, 837 (11th
Cir. 1989).
All documents filed with the Court must be in the form of a pleading, see Fed. R.
Civ. P. 7(a), or of a motion, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 7(b). Each pleading, motion, notice, or
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The parties are hereby reminded that all filings with the Court must be made in
accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the Local Rules of the United
States District Court, Middle District of Florida. The Local Rules are available for review
on the public website for the Middle District Court of Florida at www.flmd.uscourts.gov and
from the Clerk's Office. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are available for review in
the law libraries of the state and federal courthouses.
other paper shall be presented in a separate document.
Plaintiff must timely respond to the motions filed by other parties in this case, for if
he does not timely respond to such a motion, the Court may assume that Plaintiff does not
oppose that motion and any relief requested therein.2 If a party has missed a filing
deadline, the party must file motion seeking leave of Court to file the document out of time.
Local Rule 3.01(b) further requires that any brief or legal memorandum in opposition to a
motion must be filed within fourteen days after Plaintiff is served with that motion by his
opponent and may not exceed twenty pages.
Plaintiff shall not correspond with the Court or any Judge or Magistrate Judge of the
Court in letter form. In keeping with their sworn duty to maintain complete impartiality in
the exercise of their judicial duties, the Judges of this Court will only deliver their decisions
and opinions in response to those documents filed with the Clerk’s Office in accordance
with the governing rules of procedure. Any such correspondence sent to judicial officers
will not be responded to, will be stricken from the case file, and will be returned to Plaintiff.
All documents filed with the Court must include a caption (the same as is set forth
on Plaintiff’s Complaint); a brief title which describes the nature of the document; Plaintiff’s
name and signature; and a Certificate of Service. These last two items are explained
below.
All pleadings, motion, or other papers filed with the Court by Plaintiff must bear an
original signature, or they will be rejected by the Court. Among other things, such signature
serves as Plaintiff's certification, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 11 (b), that said document is
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Motions that Plaintiff must respond to include, but are not limited to, Motions to Dismiss
under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b) and Motions for Summary Judgment under Fed.R.Civ.P. 56.
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not submitted for any improper purpose; that the claims or defenses presented therein are
warranted by existing law; and that there exists reasonable factual support for allegations
or assertions made therein. Plaintiff is advised to review and become familiar with Fed. R.
Civ. P. 11, as the failure to comply with its provisions can result in the imposition of
sanctions, including monetary fines or dismissal of Plaintiff’s case.
All pleadings, motions, or other papers filed with the Court by Plaintiff must also
include a signed Certificate of Service. Such is Plaintiff’s certification that he has complied
with the requirements of Fed. R. Civ. P. 5 by serving on every other party to the action (or
its attorney) a copy of the particular pleading, motion, or other paper filed with the Court.
At a minimum, a Certificate of Service must state the date upon which a copy of the
particular document was served on the other parties to the action (or their attorneys) and
the means by which such service was made (e.g., U.S. Mail; Federal Express; hand
delivery).
As previously mentioned, all requests for relief from, or action by, the court must be
in the form of a motion. If Plaintiff seeks any relief from, or action by, the Court, or seeks
the entry of an order of any kind, Plaintiff must file a proper motion requesting such, which
motion must meet the requirements of all applicable rules, including the Local Rules and
the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Among other things, all motions must be
accompanied by a legal memorandum with citation of authorities in support of the relief
requested, see Local Rule 3.01(a), which the combined document of the motion and
memorandum cannot exceed twenty-five pages in length. Further, Plaintiff is advised that
prior to filing most motions, Local Rule 3.01(g) requires him to confer with opposing
counsel. The Court would note that Local Rule 3.01 sets forth several other important
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requirements and rules governing motions filed with the Court, and that failure to comply
with such requirements and rules can form the basis for denial of a motion.
Lastly, Plaintiff is reminded that, although he is proceeding pro se, he is not relieved
of all obligations that rest upon an attorney. There are still many requirements with which
Plaintiff must still comply, including those imposed by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
and the Local Rules of this Court. Plaintiff is warned that the failure to comply with these
requirements and obligations can have significant consequences.
For example,
submission of a motion which does not meet the applicable requirements can result in
denial of that motion
While the Court has set forth some of the more prominent procedural obligations
and requirements of litigants in this Court, this order does not purport to set forth all of
those requirements and should not be relied upon as limiting Plaintiff's duties and
obligations in litigating this case.
Upon consideration of the foregoing, it is hereby
ORDERED:
Plaintiff shall review and comply with the provisions of this order, as well as the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Local Rules of the Middle District, and any applicable
statutes and regulations.
DONE AND ORDERED at Jacksonville, Florida this 16th day of March, 2012.
Copies to all counsel of record
and Pro Se Plaintiff
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