IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS

FORT WORTH DIVISION

EUGENIO VARGAS §

§

VS. § CIVIL NO. 4:22-CV-430-Y

§

ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL §

FLIGHT ATTENDANTS, ET AL. §

INITIAL SCHEDULING ORDER

Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b), this Initial Scheduling Order

will govern the preparation of this case for trial. The Court, having

reviewed the joint status report and proposed discovery plan (doc.

21) submitted by the parties establishes the deadlines set out below

to ensure that the case is expeditiously prepared for trial.

Accordingly:

(1) The parties shall participate in a formal settlement

conference no later than March 31, 2023, at which the parties and

their counsel shall appear in person1 to discuss settlement of this

case (corporations, partnerships, associations, etc., shall

participate through a representative who shall have authority to

bargain in good faith). No later than seven (7) days after the date

of the settlement conference, each party must file a brief written

report setting out:

(a) The date on which the settlement conference was held,

(b) The persons present,

(c) A statement regarding whether meaningful progress

toward settlement was made, and

(d) A statement regarding the prospects of settlement

before trial.

1 Upon joint motion of the parties demonstrating good cause, the Court will

relieve counsel of the requirement that this meeting be in person.

(Rev. May 2020)

Case 4:22-cv-00430-Y Document 74 Filed 02/22/23 Page 1 of 4 PageID 3229
(2) The parties must file any motions to implead third parties

or to join additional parties pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 14 or 19,

respectively, no later than April 7, 2023.

(3) All disclosures relating to expert witnesses required by

Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2) must be made and supplemented in the manner

set out in that rule except that the disclosures required by

subparagraphs (A) through (C) of Rule 26(a)(2) must be made by each

party plaintiff no later than July 31, 2023, and each party defendant

no later than August 31, 2023.2 Any motions challenging these

designations, including challenges under Fed. R. Evid. 702, must be

filed by the deadline for filing pretrial motions established in this

order. Except for when the substantive law requires that attorney’s

fees be proven at trial as an element of damages (refer to Fed. R.

Civ. P. 54(d)(2)(A)), the parties need not disclose expert witnesses

as to attorney’s fees unless they later file a motion for fees under

Rule 54(d)(2). That motion must disclose to all party opponents the

names and work addresses of its expert witnesses, if any, as to

attorney’s fees.

(4) Each party plaintiff must file any motions for leave to

amend his pleadings no later than July 31, 2023.

(5) Each party defendant must file any motions for leave to

amend his pleadings no later than August 31, 2023.

(6) The parties shall cease all discovery activity under the

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on October 31, 2023.3

(7) The parties shall participate in mediation during the month

of November 2023, in accordance with the Order for Referral to

Mediation issued this same day.

(8) The parties must file all pretrial and dispositive motions

except motions in limine no later than December 15, 2023.4

2 In accordance with Rule 26(a)(2), these disclosures shall be made to all

parties but shall not be filed with the clerk of the Court.

3 All discovery must be completed by the ordered date. Parties shall serve

discovery requests with sufficient lead time to permit opponents to serve timely

responses prior to the discovery deadline. In accordance with Federal Rule of

Evidence 502, inadvertent production during discovery of information covered by

the attorney-client privilege or work-product protection will not waive the

privilege or protection.

4 All pretrial and dispositive motions shall comply with the following

requirements:

(Rev. May 2020) 2

Case 4:22-cv-00430-Y Document 74 Filed 02/22/23 Page 2 of 4 PageID 3230
Further, the parties and their counsel shall strictly comply

(1) Citations. All briefs filed with the Court shall comply with the most

recent edition of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation. Particularly,

counsel are directed to provide, where applicable, the subsections of cited

statutes, and to provide pinpoint citations when citing cases, i.e., provide the

page where the stated legal proposition can be found. See The Bluebook: A

Uniform System of Citation B10.1.2, at 13; R. 3.2(a), at 73; R. 3.3(a), at 76

(Columbia Law Review Ass'n. et al. eds., 21st ed. 2020) (regarding pinpoint

citations and subsections). Furthermore, if a brief contains citations to

unpublished opinions or to LEXIS, counsel must attach copies of those cases to

the brief.

(2) Certificates of Conference. Pursuant to local civil rule 7.1(b),

certificates of conference shall address all parties, including co-defendants and

co-plaintiffs.

(3) Summary-Judgment Procedures: 

(a) Content of Motions. Regarding summary-judgment motions, the

parties shall proceed as though local civil rules 56.3(b) and 56.4(b) contain the

word "must" instead of the word "may" in their first lines. That is, all matters

required by local civil rules 56.3(a) and 56.4(a) must be set forth in the

party's brief.

(b) Identifying Live Pleadings. The party moving for summary

judgment shall identify, in a separate section at the beginning of his brief, by

name of pleading, date filed, and document number on the Court's docket, the live

pleadings for each party who has appeared in the action. Any party filing a

response to the motion shall indicate whether he agrees with the movant's

identification of the live pleadings and, if not, why not.

(4) Appendices: 

(a) Highlighting of Appendices. Regarding the documentary evidence submitted in an appendix, Judge Means requires that, if the appendix is

electronically filed, the proponent of the appendix underline (or, as to large

passages, bracket in the margin) the portions of the appendix upon which he

relies. Similarly, if the appendix is manually filed, the portion of each page

of the appendix upon which the proponent relies must be highlighted, underlined 

(or, for large passages, bracketed in the margins).

(b) Large Appendices. Local civil rule 10.1(e) not withstanding,

the judge’s paper copy of any appendix exceeding one hundred fifty (150) pages

must be submitted in one or more three-ring binders, with the notice of

electronic filing placed on top of the appendix inside the first binder and

tabbed dividers placed between each separate exhibit.

(5) Judge-specific requirements. Counsel are advised to review Judge

Means's judge specific requirements, which are available on the Court's website

at:

http://www.txnd.uscourts.gov/judges/tmeans_req.html

(6) The Local Civil Rules now available on the Court’s website at:

http://www.txnd.uscourts.gov/rules/localrules/lr_civil.html

(Rev. May 2020) 3

Case 4:22-cv-00430-Y Document 74 Filed 02/22/23 Page 3 of 4 PageID 3231
with the terms of this initial scheduling order and be on notice that

failure to timely comply with this order may result in the imposition

of sanctions against the non-complying party or counsel or both.

This case will not be set for trial until it is clear to the

Court that the discovery process and the consideration of any

dispositive motions have progressed sufficiently to allow a reasonable

assessment by the parties and the Court of the time needed for trial

and the time the parties need to complete preparation for trial. 

Typically, this will mean that sometime shortly after the discovery

deadline the Court will issue an order requiring the attendance of

lead counsel at a trial-setting conference, at which time a trial

date will be chosen. Because this trial date will be chosen late

in the life of the case and because the parties' counsel will, within

reason, be accommodated as to the date of trial, no continuances of

trial will be granted absent compelling circumstances.

An order setting the trial date and deadlines for pretrial

materials will issue after the trial-setting conference.

SIGNED February 22, 2023.

____________________________

TERRY R. MEANS

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

(Rev. May 2020) 4

Case 4:22-cv-00430-Y Document 74 Filed 02/22/23 Page 4 of 4 PageID 3232