Sharon Gilbert Timm, Esq. 

Attorney I.D. 77778 

Penns Court, Suite 111 

350 South Main Street 

Doylestown, PA 18901 

(215) 489-0179 

___________________________ 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA 

CAROLIN BRELAND, : CIVIL ACTION 

 Plaintiff, : 

 : No. 02-CV-4401 

v. : 

: 

ATC VANCOM, : JURY TRIAL DEMANDED 

 Defendant. : 

ORDER

 AND NOW, this day of , 2002, upon consideration 

of Plaintiff’s Motion to Strike Defendant’s Reply Memorandum or for Leave to file a 

Sur-Reply Memorandum and any response thereto, it is hereby ORDERED and 

DECREED that said Motion is GRANTED. [Said Reply Memorandum is Stricken from 

the record.] [Plaintiff shall file her Sur-Reply Memorandum within ___ days of this 

Order.] 

 BY THE COURT, 

 __________________________ 

 J. 

Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 1 of 8
Sharon Gilbert Timm, Esq. 

Attorney I.D. 77778 

Penns Court, Suite 111 

350 South Main Street 

Doylestown, PA 18901 

(215) 489-0179 

___________________________ 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA 

CAROLIN BRELAND, : CIVIL ACTION 

 Plaintiff, : 

 : No. 02-CV-4401 

v. : 

: 

ATC VANCOM, : JURY TRIAL DEMANDED 

 Defendant. : 

PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO STRIKE DEFENDANT’S REPLY MEMORANDUM 

OR FOR LEAVE TO FILE SUR-REPLY MEMORANDUM 

AND NOW, this day of October , 2002, comes Plaintiff Carolin Breland, 

by and through counsel, and respectfully requests this Honorable Court to enter an Order 

striking Defendant’s Reply Memorandum of Law in Support of its Motion to Dismiss for 

the following reasons: 

 1. On September 23, 2002, Plaintiff’s counsel served via first-class mail and 

filed a response to Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss or in the Alternative to Transfer 

Venue. 

 2. On October 4, 2002, Defendant filed and served via first-class mail a 

Reply Memorandum of Law in Support of its Motion to Dismiss. 

 3. Local Rule 7.1(c) does not authorize such filings of Reply Memorandums 

without leave of Court. 

Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 2 of 8
 4. Defendant did not request leave of Court to file its Reply Memorandum. 

 5. As an alternative, Plaintiff respectfully requests this Honorable Court for 

leave to file a Sur-Reply Memorandum. 

 WHEREFORE, Plaintiff Carolin Breland respectfully requests this Honorable 

Court to enter an Order striking Defendant’s Reply Memorandum from the record for 

failure to request leave or to enter an Order permitting Plaintiff to file a Sur-Reply 

Memorandum. 

 Respectfully submitted, 

 

Date: ______________________ ______________________________ 

 SHARON GILBERT TIMM, ESQ. 

 Attorney for Plaintiffs 

Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 3 of 8
Sharon Gilbert Timm, Esq. 

Attorney I.D. 77778 

Penns Court, Suite 111 

350 South Main Street 

Doylestown, PA 18901 

(215) 489-0179 

___________________________ 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA 

CAROLIN BRELAND, : CIVIL ACTION 

 Plaintiff, : 

 : No. 02-CV-4401 

v. : 

: 

ATC VANCOM, : JURY TRIAL DEMANDED 

 Defendant. : 

PLAINTIFF’S MEMORANDUM OF LAW IN SUPPORT OF HER MOTION TO 

STRIKE DEFENDANT’S REPLY MEMORANDUM FROM THE RECORD OR 

FOR LEAVE TO FILE SUR-REPLY MEMORANDUM 

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL STATEMENT 

 In the interest of brevity, Plaintiffs incorporate the foregoing factual allegations 

contained within her foregoing Motion. 

II. DISCUSSION 

 

 Local Rule of Civil Procedure 7.1(c) states in part: 

 ... Unless the parties have agreed upon a different schedule and such 

 agreement is approved under Local Civil Rule 7.4 and is set forth in 

 the motion, or unless the Court directs otherwise, any party opposing 

 the motion shall serve a brief in opposition, together with such answer 

 or other response which may be appropriate, within fourteen (14) 

 days after service of the motion and supporting brief. ..... The Court 

 may require or permit further briefs if appropriate. 

 A. DEFENDANT’S REPLY MEMORANDUM SHOULD BE 

 STRICKEN FROM THE RECORD FOR FAILURE TO 

Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 4 of 8
 REQUEST LEAVE OF COURT 

 The rule provides only for a brief in support of a motion and a brief in opposition; 

leave to file a reply brief must be sought from the court. Beaver v. DISA, 838 F.Supp. 

206 215 (E.D. Pa. 1993). Where leave of court of not obtained, or where the court deems 

a reply inappropriate, there is nothing in the local rules or in Fed.R.Civ.P. 7(b) that would 

require the court to allow a reply to be filed. Parker v. Carroll, 6 F.Supp.2d 427, 428 

(E.D. Pa. 1998). As there is no right to file a reply memorandum without court 

permission, the Reply Memorandum...is hereby STRICKEN. McCarthy v. Pelino &

Lentz, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7940 (E.D.Pa. June 6, 1995). Defendants did not request 

leave to file a reply brief... The reply brief... will therefore be STRICKEN from the 

record. Larzarz v. Brush Wellman Inc., 1994 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12146 n.1 (E.D.Pa. Aug. 

26, 1994). 

 Here, Defendant filed its Reply Memorandum without seeking leave of Court. 

Defense counsel has no right to file such reply memorandum. Therefore, Plaintiff 

respectfully requests the Reply Memorandum be stricken from the record. 

 B. PLAINTIFF IS GRANTED LEAVE TO FILE A SUR- 

 REPLY MEMORANDUM 

 It is not unheard of for a sur-reply brief to be filed. Kot v. Hackett, 1993 U.S. 

Dist. LEXIS 10429 (E.D.Pa. July 29, 1993), a sur-reply filed in civil rights case. 

 Should the court deny Plaintiff’s motion to strike Defendant’s Reply 

memorandum, Plaintiff respectfully requests that she be permitted to file a sur-reply 

memorandum. 

III. CONCLUSION 

Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 5 of 8
 Therefore, for all the foregoing reasons and authority of law, Plaintiff respectfully 

requests this Honorable Court to enter an Order striking Defendant’s Reply 

Memorandum from the Record or granting Plaintiff leave to file a Sur-Reply 

Memorandum. 

 Respectfully submitted, 

 

Date: ________________________ ______________________________ 

 SHARON GILBERT TIMM, ESQ. 

 Attorney for Plaintiff

Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 6 of 8
Sharon Gilbert Timm, Esq. 

Attorney I.D. 77778 

Penns Court, Suite 111 

350 South Main Street 

Doylestown, PA 18901 

(215) 489-0179 

___________________________ 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA 

CAROLIN BRELAND, : CIVIL ACTION 

 Plaintiff, : 

 : No. 02-CV-4401 

vi. : 

: 

ATC VANCOM, : JURY TRIAL DEMANDED 

 Defendant. : 

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

 I, Sharon Gilbert Timm, Esquire, attorney for Plaintiff, hereby certify that a true 

and correct copy of Plaintiff’s Motion to Strike Reply Memorandum or for Leave to File 

Sur-Reply Memorandum was sent via prepaid U.S. Mail first class upon the following: 

 Jonathan F. Bloom, Esquire James N. Foster, Jr., Esquire 

 Jason K. Cohen, Esquire Gregory A. Shoemaker, Esquire 

 Stradley, Ronon, Stevens & Young, LLP McMahon, Berger, Hanna, Linihan, 

 Cody & Young, LLP 

 2600 One Commerce Square 2730 North Ballas Road, Suite 200 

 Philadelphia, PA 19103-7098 St. Louis, MO 63131-3039 

 

Date: _______________________ ____________________________ 

 Sharon Gilbert Timm, Esquire 

 Attorney for Plaintiff 

Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 7 of 8
Case 2:02-cv-04401-TON Document 13 Filed 10/30/2002 Page 8 of 8