Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-casd-3_07-cv-01128/USCOURTS-casd-3_07-cv-01128-5/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 190
Nature of Suit: Other Contract Actions
Cause of Action: 28:1332 Diversity-Breach of Contract

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07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

XIFIN, INC., a California

corporation,

Plaintiff,

v.

BIOPATH HOLDINGS LABS, LLC, dba

BIOPATH CLINICAL LABS, DOES 1,

BIOPATH LAB HOLDINGS, LLC, and

DOES 2-10, inclusive,

Defendants. 

 

BIOPATH LAB HOLDINGS, LLC, a

New York limited liability

company,

Counterclaimant,

v.

XIFIN, INC., a California

corporation,

Counterdefendant. 

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Case No. 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE

ORDER REGULATING DISCOVERY AND

OTHER PRETRIAL PROCEEDINGS

(Fed. R. Civ. P. 16) 

(Local Rule 16.1)

(Fed. R. Civ. P. 26)

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Case 3:07-cv-01128-LAB-BLM Document 18 Filed 09/21/07 Page 1 of 8
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2 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

Pursuant to Rule 16 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a

telephonic Case Management Conference was held on September 20, 2007 at

2:00 p.m. After consulting with the attorneys of record for the parties

and being advised of the status of the case, and good cause appearing,

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED:

1. The parties shall submit an executed proposed protective order

to the Court on or before October 19, 2007. 

2. Any motion to join other parties, to amend the pleadings, or

to file additional pleadings shall be filed on or before October 22,

2007.

3. The parties shall designate their respective case-in-chief

experts in writing on or before December 21, 2007. Rebuttal experts

shall be designated on or before January 11, 2008. The written

designations shall include the name, address, and telephone number of

the expert and a reasonable summary of the testimony the expert is

expected to provide. The list shall also include the normal rates the

expert charges for deposition and trial testimony.

4. Each expert witness designated by a party shall prepare a

written report to be provided to all other parties no later than

February 22, 2008, containing the information required by Fed. R. Civ.

P. 26(a)(2)(A) and (B).

5. Any party, through any expert designated, shall in accordance

with Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2)(C) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(e), supplement

any of its expert reports regarding evidence intended solely to

contradict or rebut evidence on the same subject matter identified in

an expert report submitted by another party. Any such supplemental

reports are due on or before March 7, 2008.

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Case 3:07-cv-01128-LAB-BLM Document 18 Filed 09/21/07 Page 2 of 8
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3 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

Please be advised that failure to comply with expert discovery or

any other discovery order of the court may result in the sanctions

provided for in Fed. R. Civ. P. 37 including a prohibition on the

introduction of experts or other designated matters in evidence.

6. All discovery, including expert discovery, shall be completed

by all parties on or before April 25, 2008. "Completed" means that all

discovery under Rules 30-36 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and

discovery subpoenas under Rule 45, must be initiated a sufficient period

of time in advance of the cut-off date, so that it may be completed by

the cut-off date, taking into account the times for service, notice, and

response as set forth in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Counsel shall promptly and in good faith meet and confer in person

with regard to all discovery disputes in compliance with Civil Local

Rules 16.5(k) and 26.1(a). All discovery motions shall be filed within

thirty (30) days after counsel have met and conferred in person and in

good faith and reached an impasse with regard to any particular

discovery issue, but in no event shall discovery motions be filed more

than sixty (60) days after the date upon which the event giving rise to

the discovery dispute occurred. For oral discovery, the event giving

rise to the discovery dispute is the completion of the transcript of the

affected portion of the deposition. For written discovery, the event

giving rise to the discovery dispute is either the service of the

response, or, if no response was served, the initial date the response

was due. In addition, all discovery motions must be filed within thirty

(30) days after the close of discovery.

7. All other pretrial motions must be filed on or before May 27,

2008. Motions will not be heard or calendared unless counsel for the

moving party has obtained a motion hearing date from the law clerk of

Case 3:07-cv-01128-LAB-BLM Document 18 Filed 09/21/07 Page 3 of 8
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4 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

the judge who will hear the motion. Failure to timely request a motion

date may result in the motion not being heard. Motions will not be

heard unless you have obtained a date from the judge’s law clerk.

Briefs or memoranda in support of or in opposition to any pending

motion shall not exceed twenty-five (25) pages in length without leave

of the judge who will hear the motion. No reply memorandum shall exceed

ten (10) pages without such leave of court. Briefs and memoranda

exceeding ten (10) pages in length shall have a table of contents and

a table of authorities cited.

8. A Mandatory Settlement Conference shall be conducted on

December 17, 2007 at 9:30 a.m. in the chambers of Magistrate Judge

Barbara L. Major located at 940 Front Street, Suite 5140, San Diego, CA

92101. All discussions at the Mandatory Settlement Conference will be

informal, off the record, privileged, and confidential. Counsel for any

non-English speaking party is responsible for arranging for the

appearance of an interpreter at the conference.

a. Personal Appearance of Parties Required: All parties,

adjusters for insured defendants, and other representatives of a party

having full and complete authority to enter into a binding settlement,

as well as the principal attorneys responsible for the litigation, must

be present in person and legally and factually prepared to discuss

settlement of the case. Counsel appearing without their clients

(whether or not counsel has been given settlement authority) will be

cause for immediate imposition of sanctions and may also result in the

immediate termination of the conference.

Unless there are extraordinary circumstances, persons required to

attend the conference pursuant to this Order shall not be excused from

personal attendance. Requests for excuse from attendance for

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1 "Full settlement authority" means that the individuals at the settlement

conference must be authorized to explore settlement options fully and to agree at that

time to any settlement terms acceptable to the parties. Heileman Brewing Co. v. Joseph

Oat Corp., 871 F.2d 648, 653 (7th Cir. 1989). The person needs to have "unfettered

discretion and authority" to change the settlement position of a party. Pitman v.

Brinker Int'l, Inc., 216 F.R.D. 481, 485-86 (D. Ariz. 2003). The purpose of requiring

a person with unlimited settlement authority to attend the conference contemplates that

the person's view of the case may be altered during the face to face conference. Id.

at 486. A limited or a sum certain of authority is not adequate. See Nick v. Morgan's

Foods, Inc., 270 F.3d 590, 595-97 (8th Cir. 2001).

5 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

extraordinary circumstances shall be made in writing at least three (3)

court days prior to the conference. Failure to appear in person at the

Mandatory Settlement Conference will be grounds for sanctions.

b. Full Settlement Authority Required: In addition to

counsel who will try the case, a party or party representative with full

settlement authority1 must be present for the conference. In the case

of a corporate entity, an authorized representative of the corporation

who is not retained outside counsel must be present and must have

discretionary authority to commit the company to pay an amount up to the

amount of the Plaintiff's prayer (excluding punitive damages prayers).

The purpose of this requirement is to have representatives present who

can settle the case during the course of the conference without

consulting a superior. Counsel for a government entity may be excused

from this requirement so long as the government attorney who attends the

Mandatory Settlement Conference (1) has primary responsibility for

handling the case, and (2) may negotiate settlement offers which the

attorney is willing to recommend to the government official having

ultimate settlement authority.

c. Confidential Settlement Statements Required: No later

than December 10, 2007, the parties shall submit directly to Magistrate

Case 3:07-cv-01128-LAB-BLM Document 18 Filed 09/21/07 Page 5 of 8
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6 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

Judge Major's chambers confidential settlement statements no more than

five (5) pages in length. These confidential statements shall not be

filed or served on opposing counsel. Each party's confidential

statement must include the following:

(i) A brief description of the case, the claims and/or

counterclaims asserted, and the applicable defenses or position

regarding the asserted claims;

(ii) A specific and current demand or offer for

settlement addressing all relief or remedies sought. If a specific

demand or offer for settlement cannot be made at the time the brief is

submitted, then the reasons therefore must be stated along with a

statement as to when the party will be in a position to state a demand

or make an offer; and

(iii) A brief description of any previous settlement

negotiations, mediation sessions, or mediation efforts.

General statements that a party will "negotiate in good faith" is

not a specific demand or offer contemplated by this Order. It is

assumed that all parties will negotiate in good faith.

d. Requests to Continue a Mandatory Settlement Conference:

Any request to continue the Mandatory Settlement Conference or request

for relief from any of the provisions or requirements of this Order must

be sought by a written ex parte application. The application must (1)

be supported by a declaration of counsel setting forth the reasons and

justifications for the relief requested, (2) confirm compliance with

Civil Local Rule 26.1, and (3) report the position of opposing counsel

or any unrepresented parties subject to the Order. Absent extraordinary

circumstances, requests for continuances will not be considered unless

submitted in writing no fewer than (7) days prior to the scheduled

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7 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

conference.

If the case is settled in its entirety before the scheduled date

of the conference, counsel and any unrepresented parties must still

appear in person, unless a written joint motion confirming the complete

settlement of the case is submitted no fewer than twenty-four (24) hours

before the scheduled conference.

9. Counsel shall make their Pretrial Disclosures required by Fed.

R. Civ. P. 26(a)(3) on or before September 8, 2008.

10. Counsel may object to Pretrial Disclosures on or before

September 15, 2008.

11. Despite the requirements of Civil Local Rule 16.1(f)(2),

neither party is required to file a Memorandum of Contentions of Fact

and Law at any time. The parties shall instead focus their efforts on

drafting and submitting a proposed pretrial order by the time and date

specified by Civil Local Rule 16.1(f)(6)(b). The proposed pretrial

order shall comply with Civil Local Rule 16.1(f)(6) and the Standing

Order in Civil Cases issued by the Honorable Larry A. Burns.

12. On or before September 22, 2008, counsel shall meet and take

the action required by Local Rule 16.1(f)(4).

13. The Proposed Final Pretrial Conference Order shall be

prepared, served, and lodged with the Honorable Larry A. Burns on or

before the time and date specified by Civil Local Rule 16.1(f)(6)(b).

14. The final Pretrial Conference is scheduled on the calendar of

the Honorable Larry A. Burns on September 29, 2008 at 11:15 a.m.

15. A post-trial settlement conference before a magistrate judge

may be held within thirty days of verdict in the case.

16. The dates and times set forth herein will not be modified

except for good cause shown.

Case 3:07-cv-01128-LAB-BLM Document 18 Filed 09/21/07 Page 7 of 8
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8 07cv1128-LAB (BLM)

17. Plaintiff's(s') counsel shall serve a copy of this order and

the Standing Order in Civil Cases issued by the Honorable Larry A. Burns

on all parties that enter this case hereafter.

DATED: September 21, 2007

BARBARA L. MAJOR

United States Magistrate Judge

COPY TO: 

HONORABLE LARRY A. BURNS

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

ALL COUNSEL

Case 3:07-cv-01128-LAB-BLM Document 18 Filed 09/21/07 Page 8 of 8