Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-00154/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-00154-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 350
Nature of Suit: Motor Vehicle Personal Injury
Cause of Action: 28:1441 Petition for Removal- Tort/Motor Vehicle (P.I.)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

NATALIE ROCHA, CASE NO. CV F 14-0154 LJO BAM

Plaintiff, ORDER TO VACATE HEARING

vs. (Docs. 3, 9)

CONAGRA FOODS PACKAGED

FOOD, LLC, et al.,

Defendants.

______________________________/

PRELIMINARY STATEMENT

Judges in the Eastern District of California carry the heaviest caseload in the nation, 

and this Court is unable to devote inordinate time and resources to individual cases and 

matters. Given his voluminous caseload, U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill must 

prioritize criminal and older civil cases, and at times, at the expense of newer civil actions and 

to the inconvenience of litigants of newer civil actions.

Civil trials set before Judge O'Neill trail until he becomes available and are subject to 

suspension mid-trial to accommodate criminal matters. Civil trials are no longer reset to a 

later date if Judge O'Neill is unavailable on the original date set for trial. If a trial trails, it 

may proceed with little advance notice, and the parties and counsel may be expected to 

proceed to trial with less than 24 hours notice. Moreover, this Court’s Fresno Division 

randomly and without advance notice reassigns civil actions to U.S. District Judges 

throughout the nation to serve as visiting judges. In the absence of Magistrate Judge consent, 

this action is subject to reassignment to a U.S. District Judge from outside the Eastern District 

Case 1:14-cv-00154-BAM Document 12 Filed 03/04/14 Page 1 of 3
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of California. 

Case management difficulties, including trial setting and interruption, are avoided if 

the parties consent to conduct of further proceedings by a U.S. Magistrate Judge. As such, the 

parties are required to consider, and if necessary, to reconsider consent to one of the Court's

U.S. Magistrate Judges to conduct all further proceedings in that the Magistrate Judges’ 

availability is far more realistic and accommodating to parties than that of U.S. District Judge 

Lawrence J. O'Neill. A Magistrate Judge consent form is available on this Court’s website.

The parties and counsel are encouraged to contact United States Senators Dianne 

Feinstein and Barbara Boxer to address this Court’s inability to accommodate the parties and 

this action. For further information regarding handling of this action, the parties may contact 

attorney Gary Green at (559) 499-5683 or email him at ggreen@caed.uscourts.gov.

ORDER

On February 11, 2014, defendant ConAgra Foods Packaged Foods, LLC filed its

F.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss plaintiff’s original complaint and set a March 12, 2014

hearing. On March 3, 2014, plaintiff filed her first amended complaint (“FAC”) as matter of 

course under F.R.Civ.P. 15(a)(1). As such and on the basis of good cause, this Court:

1. VACATES the March 12, 2014 hearing on ConAgra’s motion to dismiss in that 

the FAC renders moot the motion to dismiss plaintiff’s original complaint;

2. ORDERS no party to appear on March 12, 2014;

3. DIRECTS the clerk to term the motion to dismiss the original complaint (doc. 3);

and

4. ORDERS ConAgra, no later than March 25, 2014, to file and serve papers to 

respond to the FAC

This Court will take no further action on ConAgra's motion to dismiss the original 

/ / /

/ / /

/ / /

/ / /

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complaint (doc. 3).

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: March 4, 2014 /s/ Lawrence J. O’Neill 

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Case 1:14-cv-00154-BAM Document 12 Filed 03/04/14 Page 3 of 3