Dahl v. Berryhill

Filing 16

ORDER striking re 15 Brief in Support of Motion, filed by Tammy Sue Dahl. (cc: all counsel)(Griesbach, William)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
TAMMY SUE DAHL,
Plaintiff,
v.

Case No. 18-C-676

NANCY A. BERRYHILL,
Defendant.

ORDER

Plaintiff Tammy Sue Dahl has filed a complaint seeking review of the decision of the
Commissioner of Social Security. On August 24, 2018, Plaintiff filed her initial brief. Plaintiff’s brief
is a blatant violation of the court’s rules. At 50 pages long, the brief is nearly twice as long as the
30-page limit set forth in this court’s briefing letter. ECF No. 10. “No memorandum exceeding the
page limitations may be filed unless the Court has previously granted leave to file an oversized
memorandum.” Civil L.R. 7(f). It is worth noting that the purpose underlying the rule governing
page limitations is not just for the benefit of the court:
The page limit is designed as much for the benefit of the litigants as for the benefit
of the court. If extra pages mean stronger argument, enforcement of the page limit
protects those who obey the rules. But extra pages may not be stronger argument.
A limitation induces the advocate to write tight prose, which helps his client’s cause.
Morgan v. South Bend Cmty. Sch. Corp., 797 F.2d 471, 480 (7th Cir. 1986). From the court’s brief
review of Plaintiff’s initial brief, counsel would do well to hone his argument. Plaintiff’s brief
contains large block quotes, mostly from the transcript of the hearing before the Administrative Law
Judge, which is readily available to the court and need not be extensively reproduced. Shrinking or
removing these long quotations seems likely to substantially reduce the brief’s length.

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that Plaintiff’s brief (ECF No. 15) is STRICKEN.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff may file an opening brief that complies with this
court’s page limitation within 14 days of the date of this order.
Dated this 27th day of August, 2018.
s/ William C. Griesbach
William C. Griesbach, Chief Judge
United States District Court

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