E. et al v. SCHOOL DISTRICT OF PHILADELPHIA BOARD OF EDUCATION

Filing 170

ORDERED THAT PLAINTIFFS' REQUEST FOR A JURY TRIAL IS GRANTED. THE CASE WILL PROCEED AS OUTLINED IN THE ORDER. SIGNED BY HONORABLE GENE E.K. PRATTER ON 7/18/14. 7/21/14 ENTERED AND COPIES E-MAILED.(rab, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA
RONALD E. and LESLIE A.
:
CHAMBERS, as GUARDIANS of
:
CIVIL ACTION
FERREN CHAMBERS an incapacitated
:
person and RONALD E. and LESLIE
:
A. CHAMBERS, in their own right,
:
:
Plaintiffs,
:
v.
:
:
THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF
:
No. 05-2535
PHILADELPHIA BOARD OF
:
EDUCATION,
:
Defendant.
:

ORDER
AND NOW, this 18th day of July, 2014, upon consideration of Plaintiffs’ letter request
for a jury trial dated June 18, 2014 (Docket No. 167), Defendant’s Opposition to Plaintiffs’ letter
request, and Plaintiffs’ revised reply (Docket No. 167), it is hereby ORDERED that Plaintiffs’
request is GRANTED. The case shall be tried to a jury, and shall proceed on the following
schedule:
Final Pretrial Conference, Preparations and Required Submissions, and Trial Pool
1.

All trial exhibits shall be marked and exchanged on or before September 19,

2.

All parties are to prepare and file with the Clerk of Court their Pretrial

2014.

Memoranda, in accordance with this Order and Local Rule of Civil Procedure 16.1(c) as
follows:
a. Plaintiffs: on or before September 26, 2014.
b. Defendant: on or before October 3, 2014.

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One (1) copy of each Pretrial Memorandum shall be served on the Court (Chambers), and
one copy on each opposing counsel, when the original is filed.
3.

Any party having an objection to: (a) the admissibility of any exhibit based on

authenticity; (b) the admissibility for any reason (except relevancy) of any evidence expected to
be offered; or (c) the admissibility of any opinion testimony from lay witnesses pursuant to
Federal Rule of Evidence 701, shall set forth separately each such objection in their Pretrial
Memorandum. Each objection shall describe with particularity the ground and the authority for
the objection.
4.

A final pretrial conference will be held with the Honorable Gene E.K. Pratter on

November 4, 2014, at 10:00 a.m., in Chambers. 1 Lead trial counsel is required to appear at the
conference. If trial counsel is on trial in another matter, an attorney in his or her office who is
thoroughly familiar with this case is required to appear at the conference.
5.

The parties shall meet to prepare a complete and comprehensive stipulation of

uncontested facts pursuant to Local Rule of Civil Procedure 16.1 (d)(2)(b)(2). Two (2) copies of
such stipulation shall be submitted to the Court (Chambers) no later than October 17, 2014. The
original shall be filed with the Clerk of the Court.
6.

No later than October 24, 2014 each party shall submit to the Court (Chambers)—
a. Two (2) copies of (a) proposed jury voir dire questions, (b) proposed jury
instructions with pinpoint citations of authority for each point (ONE POINT
PER PAGE), (c) proposed jury interrogatories, (d) motions in limine
(excepting Daubert motions), and (e) a trial memorandum on the legal issues

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Room 10613, United States Courthouse, 601 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106.

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involved in the case. The originals shall be filed with the Clerk of the Court
and a copy served on each opponent’s counsel.
If a model jury instruction taken, for instance, from the Third Circuit
Model Instructions, O’Malley, Grenig & Lee, Federal Jury Practice and
Instructions, or Sand, Modern Federal Jury Instructions is submitted, state
whether the proposed jury instruction is unchanged or modified. If a party
modifies a model jury instruction, the modification shall be set forth with
additions underlined and deletions placed in brackets.
b. A short, written Joint Statement of the Case for reading to the jury at the
commencement of the trial which shall cover (a) a brief statement of the facts;
(b) a brief statement of cause(s) of action and the essential elements of each
cause of action; and, (c) a brief statement of the defense(s) and the essential
elements of each affirmative defense. The Joint Statement of the Case should
not exceed two (2) pages in length.
c. Motions in limine (excepting Daubert motions).
d. A trial memorandum on the legal issues involved in the case
The originals shall be filed with the Clerk of the Court and a copy served on each
opponent’s counsel. Responses to any motions in limine are due no later than October
31, 2014.
7.

A trial date certain is set for this case on November 10, 2014, subject only to the

Court’s criminal case docket. The case will be tried to a jury.

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Other Trial Preparations
8.

If any party desires an offer of proof as to any witness or exhibit, that party shall

informally inquire of opposing counsel or unrepresented party prior to trial for such information.
If the inquiring party is dissatisfied with any offer provided, such party shall file a motion
seeking relief from the Court prior to trial.
9.

Because a witness may be unavailable at the time of trial as defined in Federal

Rule of Civil Procedure 32(a)(3), the Court expects use of oral or videotape depositions at trial of
any witness whose testimony a party believes essential to the presentation of that party’s case,
whether that witness is a party, a non-party or an expert. The unavailability of any such witness
will not be a ground to delay the commencement or progress of an ongoing trial. In the event a
deposition is to be offered, the offering party shall file with the Court, prior to the
commencement of the trial, a copy of the deposition transcript, but only after all efforts have
been made to resolve objections with other counsel. Unresolved objections shall be noted in the
margin of the deposition page(s) where a Court ruling is necessary and a covering list of such
objections is also required.
10.

At least three (3) days before the trial date certain, counsel are to supply the Court

with two (2) copies of each exhibit, and three (3) copies of a schedule of exhibits which briefly
describes each exhibit.
General Expectations
11.

All counsel and unrepresented parties are expected to review the Court’s General

Policies and Procedures and Guidelines for Trial and Other Proceedings in the Courtroom
available on the Court’s website at www.paed.uscourts.gov concerning the conduct of the
litigation, including trial. Any party desiring a hard copy of this document may call the Court’s

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Civil Deputy, Ms. Rose A. Barber, at 267-299-7350, to request a copy. These Policies and
Procedures address many issues that frequently arise during the pendency of cases, and all
counsel and unrepresented parties are expected to follow those procedures in spirit and in fact.
12.

All counsel shall take such steps and undertake such procedures and processes so

as to assure their use of the electronic docketing and document availability and retrieval systems
operated by the Eastern District of Pennsylvania available from the Court.
13.

EXTENSIONS OF TIME: Any necessary application for extension of any time

deadlines, change in conference(s), or trial date(s) set forth in this Order shall be made in writing
and submitted to the Court no later than three (3) days prior to the date sought to be changed or
extended. Any such request shall include a factual verification of counsel or unrepresented party
or witness showing good cause for the request, shall contain a statement of the position of all
other parties as to the request, and, if the request relates to a discovery deadline, shall recount
what discovery the parties have thus far accomplished.

BY THE COURT:

S/Gene E.K. Pratter
GENE E.K. PRATTER
United States District Judge

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