TITLE THREE — PLEADINGS AND MOTIONS
Rule 13. Pre-Trial Procedure; Scheduling; Management
The Conference. In any action, the court may in its discretion direct the attorneys for the parties and any party appearing without counsel to appear before it for one or more conferences, for such purposes as expediting the disposition of the action, establishing early and continuing control so that the case will not be protracted for want of management, discouraging wasteful pre-trial activity, improving the quality of the trial through more thorough preparation, and facilitating settlement. A conference shall be held in the proceeding communications of the case or in such other manner as the court directs, and the court shall give notice of the time of the conference in Coordinated Universal Time.
Matters for Consideration. At any conference under this rule the court may consider and take appropriate action upon:
The simplification of the issues;
The necessity or desirability of amendments to the pleadings;
The possibility of obtaining admissions of fact and of documents which will avoid unnecessary proof;
The limitation of the number of expert witnesses;
The timing and extent of discovery;
The preservation and discovery of electronically stored information;
Agreements or proceedings for asserting claims of privilege or of protection as trial preparation material after information is produced;
Such other matters as may aid in the disposition of the action;
Settlement, and the use of any procedure authorized by statute or by these rules to assist in resolving the dispute, including a settlement accepted on behalf of the government by the Solicitor General under 7 R. Stat. § 122.006;
Limits upon discovery, including limits upon the number of depositions, interrogatories, requests for production, and requests for admission, and the proportionality of discovery to the needs of the case under Rule 19;
The referral of the action, or of any pre-trial matter in it, to a magistrate judge under Rule 13(6);
The identification of witnesses by username, the exchange of exhibits, and the scheduling of the filing of pre-trial briefs;
The form and content of the pre-trial order.
Attendance and Participation. A represented party shall authorize at least one of its attorneys to make stipulations and admissions about all matters that can reasonably be anticipated for discussion at a conference. The court may require that a party, or a representative of a party with authority to settle, be present or reasonably available. A party appearing without counsel shall attend in person.
The Scheduling Order.
In every action the court may, and in any action in which a conference is held the court shall, enter a scheduling order.
The scheduling order shall fix the time to join other parties, to amend the pleadings, to complete discovery, and to file motions, and shall fix the date and time of trial. Every date and time fixed shall be stated in Coordinated Universal Time, and shall fall within the one hundred and sixty-eight (168) hours allowed for pre-trial proceedings by Rule 6(1) unless the court, for cause shown, enlarges that period under Rule 6(2).
The scheduling order may modify the timing and extent of disclosure and discovery; provide for the disclosure, discovery, or preservation of electronically stored information and of in-game and platform records; adopt any agreement of the parties for asserting claims of privilege or of protection as trial preparation material after information is produced; direct that before moving for an order relating to discovery the movant shall request a conference with the court; set the dates of further conferences; and include any other appropriate matter.
The court shall not by scheduling order require any act that the electronic filing system cannot perform. No period fixed by a scheduling order is computed, tracked, or enforced by the electronic filing system; every such period is policed by the parties and by the court on motion.
Modifying a Schedule. A schedule fixed under this rule may be modified only for good cause and with the judge’s consent, on motion or on the court’s own initiative. A stipulation of the parties does not modify a schedule. A motion to modify shall be filed before the expiration of the period sought to be modified, unless the failure to act was the result of excusable neglect, as provided by Rule 6(2).
Referral to a Magistrate Judge. The court may assign a magistrate judge to try the action, or to conduct any or all pre-trial proceedings in it, as provided by 3 R. Stat. § 131.203. Unless the referral specifically provides otherwise, a magistrate judge so assigned shall hear and determine only non-dispositive matters. A magistrate judge shall not hear, determine, or enter any order upon a dispositive matter unless the matter is referred for proposed findings, a report, and recommendations, and any report and recommendation so issued has no effect unless adopted, modified, or rejected by the superior court judge. No assignment or referral shall be made in a civil proceeding in which the state is a party. A party may file objections to a report and recommendation within forty-eight (48) hours after it is served.
The Pre-Trial Order. After any conference under this rule the court shall enter an order reciting the action taken. That order controls the subsequent course of the action unless the court modifies it. The court may hold a final pre-trial conference to formulate a trial plan, including a plan to facilitate the admission of evidence; that conference shall be held as close to the start of trial as is reasonable and shall be attended by at least one attorney who will conduct the trial for each party and by every party appearing without counsel. The court may modify an order entered after a final pre-trial conference only to prevent manifest injustice.
Sanctions.
On motion or on its own initiative, the court may enter any just order, including those authorized by Rule 26.3, where a party or its attorney fails to appear at a conference under this rule, is substantially unprepared to participate or does not participate in good faith in the conference, or fails to obey a scheduling or other pre-trial order.
Instead of or in addition to any other sanction, the court shall order the party, its attorney, or both, to pay the reasonable expenses, including attorney’s fees, incurred because of the non-compliance, unless the non-compliance was substantially justified or other circumstances make an award of expenses unjust.
Where the conduct sanctioned was taken primarily for the purpose of unreasonable delay, the court shall proceed under 7 R. Stat. § 132.302 and Rule 11(8).
A sanction under this subdivision shall be imposed only after notice and a reasonable opportunity to respond, which shall be not less than twenty-four (24) hours.