American Airlines Inc v. Travelport Limited et al

Filing 121

INITIAL SCHEDULING ORDER: Joinder of Parties due by 1/31/2012. Amended Pleadings due by 3/1/2012. Discovery due by 5/15/2012. Motions due by 6/15/2012. [see Order for specifics] (Ordered by Judge Terry R Means on 8/1/2011) (klm)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
FORT WORTH DIVISION
AMERICAN AIRLINES, INC.
VS.
TRAVELPORT LIMITED, et al.

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CIVIL ACTION NO. 4:11-CV-244-Y

INITIAL SCHEDULING ORDER
(FORM REVISED JULY 2011)
Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b), this Initial Scheduling
Order will govern the preparation of this case for trial.
Court,

having

reviewed

the

joint

status

report

and

The

proposed

discovery plan recently submitted by the parties establishes the
deadlines set out below to ensure that the case is expeditiously
prepared for trial.
Accordingly:
(1) The parties shall participate in mediation during the
month of May 2012, in accordance with the Order for Referral to
Mediation issued this same day.
(2) The parties shall participate in a formal settlement
conference on a date and at a time and location mutually agreeable
to the parties, but in no event later than January 31, 2012, at
which the parties and their counsel shall appear in person1 to
discuss settlement of this case (corporations, partnerships,
associations, etc., shall participate through a representative who
shall have authority to bargain in good faith).
No later than
February 7, 2012, or seven (7) days after the date of the
settlement conference, whichever occurs first, each party must file
a brief written report setting out:
(a)
(b)

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The date on which the settlement conference was
held,
The persons present,

Upon joint motion of the parties demonstrating good cause, the Court will
relieve counsel of the requirement that this meeting be in person.

(c)

A statement regarding whether meaningful progress
toward settlement was made, and

(d)

A statement regarding the prospects of settlement
before trial.

(3) The parties must make the initial disclosures provided
for by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1)(A) in the manner set out in that
rule except that the deadline for making such disclosures is hereby
extended to September 1, 2011.2
(4) The parties must file any motions to implead third
parties or to join additional parties pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P.
14 or 19, respectively, no later than January 31, 2012.
(5) All disclosures relating to expert witnesses required by
Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2) must be made and supplemented in the
manner set out in that rule except that the disclosures required by
subparagraphs (A) and (B) of Rule 26(a)(2) must be made by each
party plaintiff no later than February 15, 2012, and each party
defendant no later than March 15, 2012.3 Rebuttal experts must be
disclosed no later than April 15, 2012. Any motions challenging
these designations, including challenges under Fed. R. Evid. 702,
must be filed by the deadline for filing pretrial motions
established in this order. Except for when the substantive law
requires that attorney’s fees be proven at trial as an element of
damages (refer to Fed. R. Civ. P. 54(d)(2)(A)), the parties need
not disclose expert witnesses as to attorney’s fees unless they
later file a motion for fees under Rule 54(d)(2). That motion must
disclose to all party opponents the names and work addresses of its
expert witnesses, if any, as to attorney’s fees.
(6) Each party must file any motions for leave to amend his
pleadings no later than March 1, 2012.
(7) The parties shall cease all document production activity
under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on March 1, 2012; and
cease all fact discovery on May 15, 2012.4

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In accordance with Rule 26(a)(1), these disclosures shall be provided to
all parties but shall not be filed with the clerk of the Court.
3

In accordance with Rule 26(a)(2), these disclosures shall be made to all
parties but shall not be filed with the clerk of the Court.
4

All discovery must be completed by the ordered date. Parties shall serve
discovery requests with sufficient lead time to permit opponents to serve timely
responses prior to the discovery deadline. In accordance with Federal Rule of

2

(8) The parties must file all pretrial and dispositive
motions except motions in limine no later than June 15, 2012.5

Evidence 502, inadvertent production during discovery of information covered by
the attorney-client privilege or work-product protection will not waive the
privilege or protection.
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All pretrial and dispositive motions shall comply with the following
requirements:
(1) Citations. All briefs filed with the Court shall comply with the most
recent edition of THE BLUEBOOK, A UNIFORM SYSTEM OF CITATION (Colum. L. Rev. Ass'n et
al. eds, 18th ed. 2005). Particularly, counsel are directed to provide, where
applicable, the subsections of cited statutes, and to provide jump cites when
citing cases, i.e., provide the page where the stated legal proposition can be
found. See id. R. 3.2-3.4, at 59-63 (regarding pinpoint or "jump" cites and
subsections, respectively).
Furthermore, if a brief contains cites to
unpublished opinions or to LEXIS, counsel must attach copies of those cases to
the brief.
(2) Certificates of Conference. Pursuant to local civil rule 7.1(b),
certificates of conference shall address all parties, including co-defendants and
co-plaintiffs.
(3)

Summary-Judgment Procedures:

(a) Content of Motions. Regarding summary-judgment motions, the
parties shall proceed as though local civil rules 56.3(b) and 56.4(b) contain the
word "must" instead of the word "may" in their first lines. That is, all matters
required by local civil rules 56.3(a) and 56.4(a) must be set forth in the
party's brief.
The party moving for summary
(b) Identifying Live Pleadings.
judgment shall identify, in a separate section at the beginning of his brief, by
name of pleading, date filed, and document number on the Court's docket, the live
pleadings for each party who has appeared in the action. Any party filing a
response to the motion shall indicate whether he agrees with the movant's
identification of the live pleadings and, if not, why not.
(4)

Appendices:

(a)
Highlighting of Appendices. Regarding the documentary evidence
submitted in an appendix, Judge Means requires that, if the appendix is
electronically filed, the proponent of the appendix underline (or, as to large
passages, bracket in the margin) the portions of the appendix upon which he
relies to support his position. Similarly, if the appendix is manually filed,
the portion of each page of the appendix upon which the proponent relies must be
highlighted, underlined, or, for large passages, bracketed in the margins.
(b)
Large Appendices. Local civil rule 10.1(e) not withstanding,
the judge’s paper copy of any appendix exceeding one hundred fifty (150) pages
must be submitted in one or more three-ring binders, with the notice of
electronic filing placed on top of the appendix inside the first binder and
tabbed dividers placed between each separate exhibit.
(5)

Judge-specific requirements.

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Counsel are advised to review Judge

Further, the parties and their counsel shall strictly comply
with the terms of this initial scheduling order and be on notice
that failure to timely comply with this order may result in the
imposition of sanctions against the non-complying party or counsel
or both.
This case will not be set for trial until it is clear to the
Court that the discovery process and the consideration of any
dispositive

motions

have

progressed

sufficiently

to

allow

a

reasonable assessment by the parties and the Court of the time
needed

for

trial

and

preparation for trial.

the

time

the

parties

need

to

complete

Typically, this will mean that sometime

shortly after the discovery deadline the Court will issue an order
requiring

the

attendance

of

lead

counsel

at

a

trial-setting

conference, at which time a trial date will be chosen.

Because

this trial date will be chosen late in the life of the case and
because the parties' counsel will, within reason, be accommodated
as to the date of trial, no continuances of trial will be granted
absent compelling circumstances.

Means's judge specific requirements, revised January 2011, which are available
on the Court's website at:
http://www.txnd.uscourts.gov/judges/tmeans_req.html
(6)
The Local Civil Rules were amended, effective December 1, 2010, and
counsel are directed to download a copy of the new rules, which are now available
on the Court’s website at:
http://www.txnd.uscourts.gov/rules/localrules/lr_civil.html

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An order setting the trial date and deadlines for pretrial
materials will issue after the trial-setting conference.
SIGNED August 1, 2011.
____________________________
TERRY R. MEANS
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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