UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

CASE NO. 20-CIV-60853-RAR

FEDIA SAMEDY, 

Plaintiff,

v.

ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE RESOURCES, INC.,

Defendant.

____________________________________/

ORDER SETTING JURY TRIAL SCHEDULE, REQUIRING MEDIATION,

AND REFERRING CERTAIN MATTERS TO MAGISTRATE JUDGE

THIS CASE is set for trial during the Court’s two-week trial calendar beginning on

February 16, 2021. Counsel for all parties shall also appear at a calendar call at 11:00 a.m. on 

February 9, 2021.

1

 Unless instructed otherwise by subsequent order, the trial and all other 

proceedings in this case shall be conducted in Courtroom 205C at the U.S. Courthouse, 299 E. 

Broward Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The parties shall adhere to the following schedule:

July 14, 2020. The parties shall select a mediator in accordance with Local Rule 16.2; 

schedule a time, date, and place for mediation; and jointly file a proposed order 

scheduling mediation via CM/ECF in the form specified on the Court’s website. In 

addition to filing the joint proposed order, the parties shall also email the order to 

ruiz@flsd.uscourts.gov in Word format. The email subject line must include the case 

number as follows: XX-CIV-XXXX-RAR. If the parties cannot agree on a mediator, 

they shall notify the Clerk in writing as soon as the impasse becomes clear, and the Clerk 

shall designate a certified mediator on a blind rotation basis. Counsel for all parties shall 

familiarize themselves with, and adhere to, all provisions of Local Rule 16.2.2 Within 

1 Pursuant to Local Rule 16.1(c), the Court does not conduct pretrial conferences unless otherwise 

requested by the parties. 

2 Pursuant to Local Rule 16.2(e), the appearance of counsel and each party (or the representatives of each 

party with full authority to enter into a full and complete compromise and settlement) is mandatory. The 

Court may impose sanctions against parties and/or counsel who do not comply with these attendance or 

settlement authority requirements. The mediator shall report non-attendance to the Court and may 

recommend the imposition of sanctions for non-attendance. 

Case 0:20-cv-60853-RAR Document 14 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/24/2020 Page 1 of 5
Page 2 of 5

seven (7) days of the mediation, the parties shall file a joint mediation report with the 

Court. The report shall indicate whether the case settled (in full or in part), whether it was 

adjourned, or whether the mediator declared an impasse. If mediation is not conducted, 

the case may be stricken from the trial calendar, and other sanctions may be imposed. 

August 4, 2020. The parties shall file all motions to amend pleadings or to join parties.

September 22, 2020. The parties shall exchange expert witness summaries or reports.

October 6, 2020. The parties shall exchange rebuttal expert witness summaries or reports.

October 20, 2020. All discovery, including expert discovery, shall be completed.3

October 27, 2020. The parties must have completed mediation and filed a mediation 

report.

November 3, 2020. The parties shall file all pre-trial motions, including motions for 

summary judgment, and Daubert motions. Each party is limited to filing one Daubert

motion. If a party cannot address all evidentiary issues in a 20-page memorandum, it must 

petition the Court for leave to include additional pages. The parties are reminded that 

Daubert motions must contain the Local Rule 7.1(a)(3) certification. 

December 1, 2020. The parties shall submit a joint pre-trial stipulation, proposed jury 

instructions and verdict form, or proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law, as 

applicable, and shall file any motions in limine (other than Daubert motions). Each party 

is limited to filing one motion in limine, which may not, without leave of Court, exceed the 

page limits allowed by the Rules. The parties are reminded that motions in limine must 

contain the Local Rule 7.1(a)(3) certification.

Jury Instructions and Verdict Form. Although they need not agree on each proposed 

instruction, the parties shall submit their proposed jury instructions and verdict form jointly. 

Where the parties do not agree on a proposed instruction, that instruction shall be set forth in bold 

type. Instructions proposed only by a plaintiff shall be underlined. Instructions proposed only by 

a defendant shall be italicized. Every instruction must be supported by citation to authority. The 

parties shall use as a guide the Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions for Civil Cases, including 

the directions to counsel contained therein. The parties shall submit, in Word format via e-mail to 

3 The parties may, by agreement or with the consent of the paired Magistrate Judge, extend this deadline 

so long as that extension does not interfere with any of the other deadlines contained in this Scheduling 

Order.

Case 0:20-cv-60853-RAR Document 14 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/24/2020 Page 2 of 5
Page 3 of 5

ruiz@flsd.uscourts.gov, proposed jury instructions and verdict form, including substantive charges 

and defenses, prior to the Calendar Call. The email subject line must include the case number 

as follows: XX-CIV-XXXX-RAR. For instructions on filing proposed documents, please see 

http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Referral to Magistrate Judge. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636 and this District’s Magistrate 

Judge Rules, all discovery matters are hereby referred to United States Magistrate Judge Jared M. 

Strauss. Furthermore, in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 636(c)(1), the parties may consent to trial

and final disposition by the Magistrate Judge. The deadline for submitting a consent is

November 3, 2020.

Good Faith Conferral. For the purposes of compliance with the good faith conferral 

requirement of Local Rule 7.1(a)(3), the parties are instructed that a single e-mail exchange with 

opposing counsel shall not constitute a good faith effort under the Local Rules. The parties are 

instructed to confer either telephonically or in person. 

Discovery. The parties may stipulate to extend the time to answer interrogatories, produce 

documents, and answer requests for admissions. The parties shall not file with the Court notices 

or motions memorializing any such stipulation unless the stipulation interferes with the deadlines 

set forth above. Stipulations that would so interfere may be entered into only with the Court’s 

approval. See FED. R. CIV. P. 29. In addition to the documents enumerated in Local Rule 26.1(b), 

the parties shall not file notices of deposition with the Court. Strict compliance with the Local 

Rules is expected, particularly with respect to motions practice. See S.D. FLA. L.R. 7.1.

Discovery Disputes. The parties shall not file any written discovery motions, 

including motions to compel, for protective order, or for sanctions, without the consent of 

Magistrate Judge Strauss. Counsel must actually confer and engage in reasonable compromise 

Case 0:20-cv-60853-RAR Document 14 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/24/2020 Page 3 of 5
Page 4 of 5

in a genuine effort to resolve their discovery disputes before seeking the Court’s intervention. The 

Court may impose sanctions, monetary or otherwise, if it determines that a party has improperly 

sought or withheld discoverable material in bad faith. If, after conferring, the parties are unable to 

resolve their discovery dispute without Court intervention, they shall not file written motions. 

Rather, the parties shall follow Judge Strauss’s Discovery Procedure Order to schedule the matter 

for a hearing.

Trial Exhibits. All trial exhibits must be pre-marked. The Plaintiff’s exhibits must be 

marked numerically with the letter “P” as a prefix; the Defendant’s exhibits must be marked 

numerically with the letter “D” as a prefix. The parties must submit a list setting out all exhibits 

by the date of the calendar call. This list must indicate the pre-marked identification label (e.g., 

P-1 or D-1) and include a brief description of the exhibit. The exhibit list shall refer to specific 

items and shall not include blanket statements such as all exhibits produced during depositions or 

Plaintiff reserves the use of any other relevant evidence. Exhibits omitted from the list will not be 

allowed at trial.

Voir Dire Questions. The Court will require each prospective juror to complete a brief 

written questionnaire prior to the commencement of questioning in the courtroom. Any party may 

submit up to five proposed, case-specific questions to be included in the questionnaire. The 

proposed questions must be filed with the Court on or before Calendar Call and must also be 

submitted to the Court, in Word format, via e-mail to ruiz@flsd.uscourts.gov. The email subject 

line must include the case number as follows: XX-CIV-XXXX-RAR. The Court will begin 

voir dire by questioning the venire individually and as a whole and will permit limited attorneydirected voir dire thereafter. The Court will not permit the backstriking of jurors. Counsel shall 

meet and prepare a concise, non-argumentative statement of the case to be read to the jury in 

Case 0:20-cv-60853-RAR Document 14 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/24/2020 Page 4 of 5
Page 5 of 5

connection with voir dire. The statement shall be filed with the Court also at or before calendar 

call. 

Settlement Notification. If this matter is settled, counsel shall inform the Court promptly 

via telephone (954-769-5560) and/or e-mail (ruiz@flsd.uscourts.gov). In addition, counsel must 

promptly file a stipulation of settlement. 

DONE AND ORDERED in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, this 24th day of June, 2020.

 _________________________________

 RODOLFO A. RUIZ II

 UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

cc: counsel of record

Case 0:20-cv-60853-RAR Document 14 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/24/2020 Page 5 of 5