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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS

SHERMAN DIVISION

MAXX LYMAN, On Behalf of Himself 

and Others Similarly Situated

v. 

GLOBE LIFE INC.

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CIVIL ACTION NO. 4:23-CV-911-SDJ

PRELIMINARY SCHEDULING ORDER

The Court, after reviewing the case management report required by Federal 

Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f) and conferring with the parties by scheduling 

conference, enters this Order which controls disposition of this case pending further

order of the Court. The following actions shall be completed by the date indicated.1

DEADLINES

02/15/2024 Deadline for motions to transfer.

02/22/2024 Deadline to add parties other than putative class 

members pursuant to any order(s) granting class 

certification.

03/4/2024 Deadline for Plaintiffs to file amended pleadings. 

(A motion for leave to amend is required.)

Deadline for Plaintiffs to disclose expert testimony 

regarding class certification issues.

03/18/2024 Deadline for Defendants to file amended pleadings. 

(A motion for leave to amend is required.)

04/1/2024 Deadline for Defendants to disclose expert testimony 

regarding class certification issues.

04/12/2024 Deadline for class certification discovery.

1 If a deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday as defined in Federal

Rule of Civil Procedure 6, the effective date is the first federal court business day following 

the deadline imposed.

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04/17/2024 Deadline for Plaintiffs to file any class certification 

motion(s).

06/17/2024 Deadline for Defendants to file a response to 

Plaintiffs’ class certification motion(s).

July 1, 2024, at 9:30am Hearing on class certification.

After the class certification issue has been resolved, the Court will enter a more 

comprehensive scheduling order for the disposition of the merits of the case.

CLASS CERTIFICATION BRIEFING

Plaintiffs’ class certification motion and any supporting briefing shall be 

contained in one document, which shall not exceed thirty (30) pages. Defendants’

response in opposition also shall not exceed thirty (30) pages. Any reply or sur-reply 

regarding certification shall not exceed ten (10) pages.

SCOPE OF DISCOVERY

Modification. Taking into account the needs of the case, the amount in 

controversy, the parties’ resources, the importance of the issues at stake in the 

litigation, and the importance ofthe proposed discovery in resolving the issues, the 

Court modifies the parameters of discovery in the following respects. See FED. R. CIV.

P. 26(b)(2).

Disclosure. The parties are reminded of the requirement, set out in this Court’s

Order Governing Proceedings, to have already disclosed, without awaiting a

discovery request, information in addition to that required by Federal Rule of Civil 

Procedure 26, including names of persons likely to have, and documents containing, 

information “relevant to the claim or defense of any party.”

If there are any questions about whether information is “relevant to the claim

or defense of any party” review Local Rule CV-26(d). A party that fails to timely

disclose any of the information required to be disclosed by order of this Court or by 

the Federal Rules of Procedure, will not, unless such failure is harmless, be permitted 

to use such evidence at trial, hearing, or in support of a motion.

Electronic Discovery. Electronically stored information will be produced in 

hard copy form or multi-page TIFF format, unless the parties agree otherwise.

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The parties are excused from the pretrial disclosure requirements set forth in 

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(3), as such disclosure is cumulative of this 

Court’s pretrial order procedures.

DISCOVERY DISPUTES

In the event the parties encounter a discovery dispute, no motions to compel 

may be filed until after the parties fulfill the “meet and confer” requirement imposed

by this Court’s Local Rule CV-7(h). If the parties are unable to resolve the dispute 

without court intervention, the parties must then call the Court’s chambers to 

schedule a telephone conference regarding the subject matter of the dispute prior to 

filing any motion to compel. After reviewing the dispute, the Court will resolve the 

dispute, order the parties to file an appropriate motion, or direct the parties to call 

the discovery hotline.

A magistrate judge is available during business hours to immediately hear 

discovery disputes and to enforce provisions of the rules. The hotline number is 903-

590-1198. See Local Rule CV-26(e).

RESOURCES

The Eastern District of Texas website (http://www.txed.uscourts.gov) contains

information about Electronic filing, which is mandatory, Local Rules, telephone 

numbers, general orders, frequently requested cases, the Eastern District fee 

schedule, and other information. The electronic filing HelpLine is 1-866-251-7534.

COMPLIANCE

A party is not excused from the requirements of this Scheduling Order because 

dispositive motions are pending, the party has not completed its investigation, the 

party challenges the sufficiency of the opposing party’s disclosure, or because another 

party has failed to comply with this Order or the rules.

Failure to comply with relevant provisions of the Local Rules, the Federal 

Rules of Civil Procedure, or this Order may result in the exclusion of evidence at trial,

the imposition of sanctions by the Court, or both. If a fellow member of the Bar makes 

a just request for cooperation or seeks scheduling accommodation, a lawyer will not 

arbitrarily or unreasonably withhold consent. However, the Court is not bound to 

accept agreements of counsel to extend deadlines imposed by rule or court order. See 

Local Rule AT-3(j).

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OTHER MATTERS

Please note the amendments to the Local Rules regarding motion practice. If 

a document filed electronically exceeds ten pages in length, including attachments, a 

paper copy of the filed document must be sent contemporaneously to the undersigned’s

chambers in Plano. See Local Rule CV-5(a)(9). Courtesy copies over twenty pages long

should be bound to the left, and voluminous exhibits should be separated by dividers.

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