1. All requests for action by the Court shall be by motion, see FED. R. CIV. P. 7(b), except for

routine requests, which may be by letter to the Court with copies to all parties, indicating in such

a letter whether the other parties consent to the request. The parties must submit courtesy copies

of pleadings and/or motions. Responses to all motions are due no later than fourteen days from

the date of filing, weekends included, court holidays excluded. Court permission, by motion, is

required before a party files a reply to a response to any motion. Any reply brief is limited to the

issues raised in the response, and may not raise theories or issues not discussed in the original

motion. 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

BARI HIMES, ET AL., :

Plaintiffs, : CIVIL ACTION

:

v. :

:

HOME DEPOT, U.S.A., INC., ET AL., : No. 02-2774

Defendants. :

SCHEDULING ORDER

AND NOW, this day of September, 2002, following a Rule 16 conference on

September 20, 2002, with counsel for the parties, and pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil

Procedure 16 and Local Rule of Civil Procedure 16.1(b), it is hereby ORDERED that:

1. Counsel for all parties are strongly encouraged to resolve discovery disputes by

themselves. In the event a discovery dispute requires court intervention, the

parties shall first seek a telephone conference with the Court before filing any

motion.

2. Any motions for leave to amend the pleadings and any motions for leave to join

other parties shall be filed by October 7, 2002.1

3. All fact discovery shall be completed by January 31, 2003. 

4. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(2), plaintiff’s experts’ identities

and their reports (including any curricula vitae) shall be disclosed by February

14, 2003; defendant’s experts’ identities and their reports (including any curricula

vitae) shall be disclosed by February 28, 2003.

Case 2:02-cv-02774-BMS Document 14 Filed 09/20/2002 Page 1 of 4
2. Motions for summary judgment must provide specific citations to those portions of the record

which show an absence of any genuine issue of material fact. Similarly, the papers opposing a

motion for summary judgment should provide specific citations to those portions of the record

which demonstrate the existence of a genuine issue of material fact. For claims arising under

state law, counsel must brief the basis for choosing the applicable law, or submit a stipulation

signed by all parties that the law of a particular state applies.

2

5. Any motions for summary judgment shall be filed by March 14, 2003.

2

Responses to any motions for summary judgment shall be filed within the time

permitted under Local Rule of Civil Procedure 7.1(c). Counsel are expected to

communicate with each other and, if possible, to produce a joint appendix for

submission to the court.

6. A Final Pretrial Conference will be held on April 7, 2003 at 8:30 a.m. Fortyeight hours prior to a pretrial conference, the parties may submit to chambers a

list of issues, no longer than two pages, which they wish to discuss at the

conference.

7. The parties will file a joint pretrial disclosure memorandum at least fourteen (14)

days before the final pretrial conference that will advise the court fully with

respect to the following:

a. The equipment to be used by each party during trial, if any, including

equipment already installed in the courtroom and equipment to be brought

to the courtroom, and any arrangements for shared use of equipment.

b. The presentation software to be used by each party during trial, if any, and

whether each party is able to receive and use digital files of presentation

materials prepared by the other.

c. Any expected use of videoconferencing.

d. The testing, inspection, compatibility, reliability, positioning, and backup

for any equipment to be brought to the courtroom for trial. Each party

will have adequate opportunity to inspect any equipment, except a

computer containing privileged and work product materials, brought into

the courtroom by the other party for use in making presentations during

trial. Counsel will be expected to represent to the court at the outset of

Case 2:02-cv-02774-BMS Document 14 Filed 09/20/2002 Page 2 of 4
3

trial that these matters have been dealt with satisfactorily. The Court

expects no delays resulting from equipment failures that could have been

anticipated..

8. In lieu of pretrial memoranda or a Final Pretrial Order under Local Rules

16.1(d)(1) and (2), counsel shall submit a joint Pretrial Stipulation by the date of

the final pretrial conference, containing:

a. Agreed facts. Counsel should make a conscientious effort to narrow the

areas of dispute;

b. Each party’s disputed facts;

c. A list of each party’s witnesses and exhibits, the subject matter of each

witness’s testimony, other disclosures required by Rule 26(a)(3), and a

realistic, good faith estimate of the total time for trial. The parties should

have pre-marked and exchanged all exhibits for trial. Any objections to

the authenticity of evidence should be noted or will be considered waived.

Objections pursuant to Rule 26(a)(3) are due seven days thereafter.

d. Proposed voir dire questions (for jury trials only);

e. A summary of the applicable law, including, in diversity cases, the basis

for choosing the applicable law;

f. An alert to the court of unusual legal issues which would serve as the basis

for a motion for a judgement as a matter of law (FED. R. CIV. PRO. 50) or

other dispositive motion. The parties should state their contentions and the

authority for those contentions;

g. The signed approval of trial counsel for each party. 

9. By April 4, 2003, counsel shall submit the following, with copies submitted to

chambers in hard copy form and on disk (in Word Perfect 8 format, if possible):

a. For jury trials, proposed points for charge and verdict sheets OR, for nonjury trials, proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law. For all

disputed legal issues, include citations to relevant authority or

challenges on that point will be deemed waived;

b. Proposed jury verdict sheets (for jury trials only).

Case 2:02-cv-02774-BMS Document 14 Filed 09/20/2002 Page 3 of 4
3. Such motions are not to exceed ten pages. Parties are encouraged to submit pretrial motions

earlier, if possible.

4

10. Final pretrial motions are due April 4, 2003.3

11. A jury trial trial in the above captioned case is set for April 21, 2003 in

Courtroom 5C.

12. At the outset of the first day of trial, all counsel must submit two sets of premarked and tabbed three ring binders containing all exhibits in the case. For

physical (“real”) evidence, simply insert a tabbed page listing an exhibit number

and enclose a short description of the exhibit. If the documentation in the trial is

so voluminous that the use of binders is impracticable, counsel should notify the

court to make alternate arrangements.

13. If agreeable to both parties, counsel for plaintiff shall telephone Chambers to

schedule a settlement conference with a Magistrate Judge. Plaintiff's counsel

shall promptly advise the court of settlement of the case.

BY THE COURT:

 

Berle M. Schiller, J.

12/2001

Case 2:02-cv-02774-BMS Document 14 Filed 09/20/2002 Page 4 of 4