Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_22-cv-00518/USCOURTS-caed-1_22-cv-00518-2/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

---

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

THOMAS LEROY HAMPTON,

Plaintiff,

v.

CALIFORNIA CORRECTIONAL 

HEALTH CARE SERVICES, et al.,

Defendants.

Case No. 1:22-cv-00518-HBK (PC)

CASE MANAGEMENT SCHEDULING ORDER

Exhaustion-Based Motion: 03/03/2025 

Complete Non-Expert Discovery: 09/03/2025

Settlement Report: 10/03/2025 

Dispositive Motion(s): 12/03/2025

On December 2, 2024, the Court granted Defendants’ Notice to Opt out of Early 

Alternative Dispute Resolution. (Doc. No. 21). Thus, pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil 

Procedure 1, 16, and 26-36, the Court sets forth the following case management deadlines and 

discovery procedures for this case as follows:

I. Written Discovery:

Discovery requests shall be served by the parties in compliance with Rule 5 of the Federal 

Rules of Civil Procedure and Eastern District of California Local Rule 135. Discovery requests 

and responses shall not be filed with the Court unless required by Eastern District California 

Local Rules 250.2, 250.3 and 250.4. Absent leave of Court, discovery is limited as follows: 

A. The parties are limited to 15 Interrogatories (an interrogatory is a written question or 

request for information sent by one party to another, to be answered under oath to clarify matters 

Case 1:22-cv-00518-HBK Document 22 Filed 12/03/24 Page 1 of 5
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

2

of fact and “may relate to any matter that may be inquired into under Rule 26(b).” Fed. R. Civ. P. 

33(a)(2)); 

B. The parties are limited to 15 Requests for Admission (a request for admission is a 

written request that the opposing party “admit, for purposes of the pending action only, the truth 

of any matters within the scope of Rule 26(b)(1)” that relate to “(A) facts, the application of law 

to fact, or opinions about either; [or] (B) the genuineness of any described documents.” Fed. R. 

Civ. P. 36(a)(1));

C. The parties are limited to 15 Requests for Production (a request for production is a 

written request that the opposing party produce documents or electronically stored information, 

“including writings, drawings, graphs, charts, photographs, sound recordings, images, and other 

data or data compilations,” or a written request that the opposing party produce any designated 

tangible things. Fed. R. Civ. P. 34(a)(1)).

If a party wishes to serve additional discovery requests, that party must file a motion for 

additional discovery requests with the Court, explaining why additional discovery requests are 

necessary.

Responses to documents shall include all documents within a party’s possession, custody, 

or control. Fed. R. Civ. P. 34(a)(1). Documents are deemed within a party’s possession, custody, 

or control if the party has actual possession, custody, or control thereof, or the legal right to 

obtain the property on demand. Allen v. Woodford, 2007 WL 309945, at *2 (E.D. Cal. 2007).

Responses to written discovery, including the production of documents, shall be due no 

later than forty-five (45) days after the request is served. Boilerplate objections are disfavored 

and may be summarily overruled by the Court. All discovery must be completed by the abovereferenced discovery cut-off date. 

The parties are required to act in good faith during discovery and are required to 

meet and confer, via correspondence or telephonically, to resolve any discovery dispute 

prior to filing any discovery motion. Motions to compel should be filed promptly after the nonreceipt or receipt of the objectionable discovery; and, in all cases no later than ten (10) days 

before the non-expert discovery deadline expires. Failure to timely file a motion to compel will 

Case 1:22-cv-00518-HBK Document 22 Filed 12/03/24 Page 2 of 5
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

3

result in a waiver of any objections to discovery. The moving party must include certification 

that they have complied with their duty to meet and confer. The failure to include a 

certification or show good cause for failure to meet and confer will result in the motion 

being stricken. The fact that Plaintiff is incarcerated does not constitute good cause to 

excuse either parties’ duty to fulfill the meet and confer requirement. 

II. Depositions

Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(a)(2)(B), Defendant(s) may depose Plaintiff and any other 

witness confined in a prison upon condition that, at least fourteen (14) days before such a 

deposition, Defendant(s) serve all parties with the notice required by Rule 30(b)(1). Pursuant to 

Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(4), the parties may take any deposition under this section by video 

conference, relieving the court reporter of the requirement to be in the physical presence of the 

witness under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 28(a)(1) during that deposition. Nothing herein 

forecloses a party from bringing a motion for protective order pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(c)(1) 

if deemed necessary.

Disagreement with any directive of security staff at the institution or prison at which the 

deposition is scheduled is not a basis for the Plaintiff to refuse to answer questions. Further, the 

failure of Plaintiff to attend, be sworn, or answer appropriate questions may result in sanctions, 

including terminating the action as provided in Fed. R. Civ. P. 37.

III. Case Management Deadlines

The following deadlines shall govern this action:

A. Deadline to challenge exhaustion of administrative remedies: 03/03/2025

B. Deadline to complete non-expert discovery: 09/03/2025. Motions to compel must be 

filed no later than ten (10) days before the non-expert discovery deadline. The motion(s) should 

include a copy of the request(s) and any response to the request(s) at issue. The responding party 

may file a response to the motion no later than twenty-one days from the date the motion is filed. 

If, after reviewing the motion(s) and response(s), the Court determines that a hearing will be 

helpful, the Court will set a hearing on the motion(s) to compel.

D. Deadline to advise of settlement potential: 10/03/2025. Defendant(s) shall confer with 

Case 1:22-cv-00518-HBK Document 22 Filed 12/03/24 Page 3 of 5
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

4

Plaintiff,1and no later than October 3, 2025, shall file a report indicating each party’s position on 

whether a further settlement conference would be productive.2

E. Deadline to file pre-trial dispositive motions: 12/03/2025. The deadline to file 

oppositions to dispositive motions, including motions for summary judgment, is thirty-five (35) 

days from the date the motion is filed on CM/ECF. The deadline to file replies to oppositions is 

fourteen (14) days from the date the opposition is filed on CM/ECF. If a party needs an extension 

to these deadlines, that party must file a motion for an extension of time.

If Defendant(s) file a motion for summary judgment, Defendant(s) shall simultaneously 

provide Plaintiff with the notice and warning required by Rand v. Rowland, 154 F.3d 952 (9th 

Cir. 1998).

F. In addition to complying with the applicable rules, a motion and incorporated 

memorandum and any responses in opposition shall not exceed twenty-five (25) pages in length, 

exclusive of exhibits. A moving party’s reply brief shall not exceed seven (7) pages in length. A 

party must move and show good cause for exceeding these page limitations before filing a motion 

in excess of these pages. Any motions filed in excess of these page limitations may be struck. 

G. Defendant(s) shall lodge a Word version of any dispositive motion to chambers at: 

hbkorders@caed.uscourts.gov and shall mail or deliver courtesy hard-copies of any motion that 

exceeds twenty-five (25) pages in length (exhibits included) to the Clerk of Court at 2500 Tulare 

St., Fresno, CA 93721, marked “to the Attention of: HBK Chambers.” Courtesy hard-copies shall 

reflect the CM/ECF document numbers and pagination.

H. The parties shall return the Consent/Decline to Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction Form no 

later than twenty-one (21) days from the date of this Order if they have not yet returned it. 

IV. Further Dates and Deadlines

If this case proceeds after dispositive motions are resolved, or if no dispositive motions 

are filed, the Court will set expert disclosure deadlines,3a telephonic trial confirmation hearing, 

1 The parties may confer by letter or telephonically.

2

If the parties request a settlement conference, the Court will stay the remaining deadlines. 

3 While the Court is not setting a deadline for expert disclosures at this time, the parties may provide their 

expert disclosures at any time.

Case 1:22-cv-00518-HBK Document 22 Filed 12/03/24 Page 4 of 5
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

5

pretrial deadlines, and a trial date, as appropriate. 

V. Effect of This Order

The deadlines set forth above are firm and will only be extended upon a showing of good 

cause. Eleventh hours motions, i.e., motions filed on the eve of the deadline expiration, to extend 

a deadline will only be granted only upon a showing of extraordinary circumstances. 

Dated: December 3, 2024 

HELENA M. BARCH-KUCHTA

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Case 1:22-cv-00518-HBK Document 22 Filed 12/03/24 Page 5 of 5