Honorable Dean D. Pregerson

I. COURTROOM SCHEDULE

Scheduling Conference: 

Civil Pretrial Conference: 

Civil Motions: Mondays, 10:00 a.m. only

​TRIALS: Tues-Fri, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with a lunch break and short breaks in the morning and afternoon.

II. PARTIES/PLEADINGS

• All unserved parties will be dismissed at the time of the pretrial conference pursuant to Local Rule 16-8.1.
• All motions to add parties or to amend the pleadings must be noticed to be heard on or before the cut-off date.

III. DISCOVERY AND DISCOVERY CUT-OFF

• All discovery, including all hearings on any related motions, must be completed by the discovery cut-off date. 
• Discovery motions are to be scheduled before the Magistrate Judge assigned to the case (the Magistrate Judge’s initials, followed by a small "x", are in the parenthetical in the case number).  All discovery motion papers must include "DISCOVERY MATTER" in the caption.
• Discovery Disputes: Counsel are expected to comply with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and all Local Rules concerning discovery. Whenever possible, the Court expects counsel to resolve discovery problems among themselves in a courteous, reasonable and professional manner.
• The Court expects that counsel will adhere strictly to the Civility and Professionalism Guideline (which can be found on the Court’s website under Attorney Information, Attorney Admissions).

IV. LAW AND MOTION

• Motions shall be filed and set for hearing in accordance with Local Rule 6-1. 
• Motions will be heard on Mondays commencing at 10:00 a.m.
• If Monday is a court holiday, this Court does not hear motions on the succeeding Tuesday.  Any motion noticed for a holiday may be stricken, or may automatically be set for the next Monday without further notice to the parties.
• Memoranda of Points and Authorities in support of or in opposition to a motion shall not exceed 25 pages.
• The court will allow only one motion for summary judgment per party, absent leave of the court. 

Motions in limine are to be noticed for hearing no later than the Monday eight (8) days prior to the trial date.  If the hearing date falls on a legal holiday, notice the motion in limine hearing fifteen days prior to the trial date.  

V. FILINGS

• Follow the local rules and federal rules of procedure.
• All papers filed with the Court must conform to Local Rule 11-3.1.1, which generally requires typeface of 14 point or larger for Times New Roman and 12 point or larger for Courier.
• Under Seal Filings in Civil Cases: Counsel are ORDERED to follow the procedures outlined in L.R. 79-5. 79-6 and 79-7. See http://www.cacd.uscourts.gov/e-filing/sealed-documents. Under Seal "cooperator" documents should NOT be linked to the defendant.    

VI. CALENDAR CONFLICTS

• If counsel has an apearance with another district judge, please E-mail Court Clerk indicating the time of the appearance and the name of the other judge. On the day of the appearance, if possible, request the other judge’s Court Clerk to update Judge Pregerson’s Court Clerk as to when counsel will be appearing in Judge Pregerson’s courtroom.
• If counsel cannot make a court appearance, good cause must be shown. The Court must approve all continuances and special requests. Counsel must make such requests in pleading form by submitting a stipulation and proposed order in accordance.
• If a stipulation cannot be reached, counsel must submit an ex parte application and proposed order. Please notify the Court Clerk by E-mail if there is any opposition to the ex parte application. The written opposition to the ex parte application must be submitted within 24 hours for consideration by the Court.

VII. CONTINUANCES

• Continuances and special requests must be approved by the Court. Good cause must be shown.
• If a stipulation cannot be reached, counsel must submit an ex parte application and proposed order. Please notify the Court Clerk by E-mail if there is any opposition to the ex parte application. The written opposition to the ex parte application must be submitted within 24 hours for consideration by the Court.
• Time does not permit the Court Clerk to respond to questions regarding whether the Court has approved requests, or to confirm a message left for counsel.

VIII. TELEPHONIC HEARINGS

The Court may permit appearances by telephone for status conferences and scheduling conferences upon a showing that a personal appearance will cause undue hardship. Only rarely will the Court permit appearances by telephone for oral argument on motions.

IX. TRIAL PREPARATION/ FINAL PRETRIAL CONFERENCE

You are instructed to read and to follow (unless otherwise stated herein) Central District of California Local Rules (“Local Rules”) 16-1 through 16-15 regarding pre-trial requirements. Counsel shall be prepared to discuss the following matters with the Court at the Pretrial Conference:

• the witnesses all parties intend to call during their respective cases, and the amount of time necessary for direct and cross examination of each witness;
• any anticipated problems in scheduling witnesses;
• any evidentiary issues, including anticipated objections under Rule 403 and objections to exhibits;
• jury selection procedures;
• all pretrial motions, including motions in limine, to bifurcate, and to sever;
• any disputed jury instructions, and the form of the instructions which will be given to the jury at the outset of the case, i.e., before opening statements and presentation of evidence;
• whether any counsel intends to use any evidence or demonstrative aid in opening statement; and
• motions to exclude witnesses from the courtroom during trial testimony.

A. The filing schedule for pretrial documents is as follows:

Twenty-one (21) days prior to the Final Pretrial Conference:

• Memorandum of Contentions of Fact and Law
• Witness Lists
• Joint Exhibit List
• Motions in Limine

Fourteen (14) days before the Final Pretrial Conference:

• Oppositions to Motions in Limine

Seven (7) days before the Final Pretrial Conference:

• Replies in support of Motions in Limine
• Proposed Final Pretrial Conference Order
• Proposed Jury Instructions
• Proposed Verdict Forms
• Statement of the Case
• Proposed additional voir dire questions, if desired
• Trial Briefs

The parties shall provide Courtesy Copies of all of the above.

B. Motions In Limine

• Five motion limit per side, absent leave.
• All motions in limine must be filed at least three (3) weeks before the final pretrial conference; any oppositions must be filed at least two weeks before the final pretrial conference; and any replies must be filed at least one week before the final pretrial conference.
• Counsel are to meet and confer and to attempt to reach an agreement that would obviate the motion.
• The court will rule on motions in limine at the final pretrial conference.
• Each motion in limine shall address no more than one substantive issue. Motions in limine should only address evidentiary issues, and are not substitutes for motions for summary adjudication of issues.

C. Jury Instructions, Statement of the Case, and Voir Dire

Pursuant to Local Rule 16-2, lead trial counsel are required to meet and confer in person with the goal of reaching agreement to one set of joint jury instructions and one verdict form. The Court expects strict compliance with Local Rule 16-2. No later than 7 days prior to the Final Pretrial Conference, counsel shall file with the Court a joint set of jury instruction on which there is agreement. The Court expects counsel to agree on a substantial majority of jury instructions, particularly when pattern or model instructions provide a statement of applicable law. If one party fails to comply with the provision of this section, the other party must file a unilateral set of jury instructions.

Each party shall also file its proposed jury instructions that are objected to by any other party. Each disputed instruction must have attached a short statement (one or two paragraphs), including points and authorities, in support of the instruction. The party opposing the instruction must attach a similar statement supporting the objection and, if applicable, a proposed alternative instruction. Each statement should be on a separate page and should follow directly after the disputed instruction.

In accordance with these instructions, the parties ultimately will submit one document or, if the parties disagree over any proposed jury instructions, two documents. If the parties submit two documents, those documents should consist of: (1) a set of agreed upon jury instructions and (2) a set of disputed jury instructions along with the parties’ statements in support of and in opposition to each disputed instruction.

Each document must include an index of all instructions therein, which must include the following:

1. the number of the instruction;
2. the title of the instruction;
3. the source of the instruction and any relevant case citations; and
4. the page number of the instruction.

When the Manual of Model Jury Instructions for the Ninth Circuit provides an applicable jury instruction, the parties should submit the most recent version, modified and supplemented to fit the circumstances of this case. Where California law applies, counsel should use the current edition of the Judicial Council of California Civil Jury Instructions (“CACI”).

During the trial and before closing argument, the Court will meet with counsel and finalize the instructions. Counsel will have an opportunity to make a further record concerning their objections. The Court will send a copy of the final jury instructions into the jury room for use by the jury during deliberations. Prior to jury deliberations, the parties shall file with the Courtroom Deputy Clerk a "clean set" of jury instructions which contains only the text of each instruction, with the caption "Jury Instruction Number __" (eliminating titles, supporting authority, indication of party proposing, etc.).

X. TRIAL EXHIBITS

• Three non-blue backed copies each of exhibit lists and witness lists (in the order they are to be called) are to be delivered to the Court Clerk on the morning of the first day of trial.
• Two exhibit notebooks (an original and the Judge's copy) are required to be delivered to the Court Clerk on the morning of the first day of trial. No additional notebook is needed for witnesses. Counsel are to prepare their exhibits by placing them in 3-hole notebooks. The notebooks are to be tabbed down the right side with numeric tabs separating each exhibit. The exhibits are to be numbered in accordance with Local Rule 26-3.1 - 26-3.5. Each exhibit must have an exhibit tag stapled to the upper right-hand corner of its first page. The spine on the exhibit notebook must reflect the exhibit numbers contained within. For example: Trial Exhibit Notebook 1, Exh. Nos. 1-25. All exhibits will be returned to counsel at the end of trial and will not be kept by the Court. Counsel are to keep the lodged and admitted exhibits in their possession pursuant to Local Rules 79-37 and 79-4.

Exhibit Tags:

Digital exhibit tags are available on the Court's website (Form G-14A plaintiff, Form G-14B defendant). Digital exhibit tags may be used in place of the tags obtained from the Clerk's office.

XI. EX PARTE APPLICATIONS AND TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDERS

Do not attempt to schedule a hearing date and time for ex parte applications and temporary restraining orders. Follow the local rules and federal rules of procedure.

Judge Pregerson will review your papers. If a hearing is necessary, counsel will be notified as soon as possible.

XII. TRANSCRIPT ORDERS

For general information on how to order a transcript of any reported or digitally recorded proceeding, please contact 213-894-3015 or visit the court website (www.cacd.uscourts.gov) section referring to Court Reporter/Recorder Transcripts. If you require an estimate of cost for the preparation of a transcript, contact the court reporter/recorder for the desired proceeding.

To determine the court reporter/recorder for a particular proceeding, go to the Court Reporter Schedule web page and click on View by Date. Once you've determined the correct court reporter/recorder for the desired session, click on Court Reporter Phone and Email List for contact information.

XIII. INTERPRETERS

Procedures for obtaining the services of an interpreter on a civil case are the responsibility of counsel. Interpreters must be certified. For information, dial 213-894-459

XIV. CONTACT WITH CHAMBERS

Unless counsel or parties have been expressly authorized to communicate with chambers, all appropriate oral and written communications are to be submitted to the Courtroom Deputy Clerk (See Local Rules). 

XV. LAW CLERK & EXTERN APPLICANTS

Applicants may submit applications to Judge Dean D. Pregerson, United States District Court, Suite 4311, 350 West 1st Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012.

Applications are to include a cover letter, resume, transcript, and writing sample. Letters of recommendation are to be directed to this address.

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