Judge David O. Carter -- United States District Court, Central District of California

Courtroom 10A, 10th Floor, Ronald Reagan Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, Santa Ana

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Key Traps — Where Counsel Gets Caught

1. ONE MSJ per party, period — no piecemeal partial-summary-judgment motions before the factual record is complete; cross-MSJs heard same day after discovery close
2. Civil motions heard Mondays at 8:30 a.m. (not 1:30 p.m.) — earlier start than most CACD judges
3. Font floor is 14-point AND double-spaced paragraphs required — non-conforming filings may be stricken without prior leave
4. Motion/opposition cap 25 pages; reply cap 10 pages — excess pages will be STRICKEN unless leave obtained before filing
5. Chambers copies REQUIRED for class-settlement final approval motions, ex parte apps (excl. PHV), Joint Rule 26(f) Reports, and all pretrial/trial docs — delivered to 10th floor box by noon next day
6. Discovery motions on inadequate responses must be filed and served within 5 days after the discovery cutoff
7. Repeated resort to the Court on discovery may trigger appointment of a Special Master at the parties' JOINT expense
8. All proceedings in person in Courtroom 10A — remote requests are "rarely granted" and require e-filed declaration showing good cause
9. No special appearances permitted — lead trial counsel expected at every conference and motion hearing
10. Calendar conflict must be resolved by stipulation with all opposing counsel; if not forthcoming, file an Ex Parte Application

Quick Reference

Topic	Rule
Motion Days	JPS Law and Motion Schedule: Civil motions, Ex Partes, Status Conferences, and Scheduling Conferences are heard on Mondays at 8:30 a.m. Criminal motions, Status Conferences, Change of Pleas, and Sentencings are heard on Mondays at 7:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. If Monday is a holiday, the next motion date is the following Monday. It is NOT necessary to clear a hearing date with the Courtroom Deputy ('CRD') before filing a motion. [carter-david \| motion_hearing_days]
Motion Limit	JPS §6: Memoranda of Points and Authorities, Motions (including TROs) and Oppositions are limited to 25 pages in length, not inclusive of the captions, signature, tables, or attorney information. Any pages in excess of these limits will be stricken if leave of court was not obtained prior to filing. [carter-david \| page_limits_motions]
Reply Limit	JPS §6: Replies are limited to 10 pages. Any pages in excess of these limits will be stricken if leave of court was not obtained prior to filing. No supplemental brief(s) or sur-reply briefs may be filed without leave of Court. Local Rule 7-10. [carter-david \| page_limits_replies]
Chambers Copies	Conditional JPS §4 Mandatory chambers copies: All original filings are to be filed electronically pursuant to Local Rule 5-4. Civil matters: motions for... [carter-david \| chambers_copies_details]
Remote Appearances	JPS Important Notice: All proceedings- including trials, motion hearings, scheduling conferences, and status conferences- will be held IN PERSON in Courtroom 10A. Any request for a remote appearance must be e-filed promptly with a declaration showing good cause. Requests for remote appearance are rarely granted. §I Civil SO: The parties must appear in person for hearings and conferences before the Court. The Court does not permit telephonic appearances. [carter-david \| remote_appearances]
Discovery	JPS §2 Discovery motions in a civil case: All discovery motions are to be calendared before the assigned Magistrate Judge. Parties and counsel are directed to the procedures for discovery motions in Local Rule 37 and are advised to consult the procedures page of the Magistrate Judge assigned to their case. [carter-david \| discovery_referral]

Procedural Briefing by Motion Type

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Before You File

Motion Days & Times

JPS Law and Motion Schedule: Civil motions, Ex Partes, Status Conferences, and Scheduling Conferences are heard on Mondays at 8:30 a.m. Criminal motions, Status Conferences, Change of Pleas, and Sentencings are heard on Mondays at 7:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. If Monday is a holiday, the next motion date is the following Monday. It is NOT necessary to clear a hearing date with the Courtroom Deputy ('CRD') before filing a motion. [carter-david | motion_hearing_days]

Notice Period

§IV. Motions. Counsel should note the timing and service requirements of Local Rules 6 and 7: (1) Rule 6-1: Notice of motion and the moving papers must be filed and served twenty-eight (28) days before the noticed hearing date, unless the notice is served by mail, in which case service is required thirty-one (31) days prior; (2) Rule 7-9: Opposing papers shall be filed twenty-one (21) calendar days before the hearing date; (3) Rule 7-10: Reply papers, if any, shall be filed fourteen (14) calendar days before the hearing date. [carter-david | motion_notice_days]

Motion Page / Word Limit

JPS §6: Memoranda of Points and Authorities, Motions (including TROs) and Oppositions are limited to 25 pages in length, not inclusive of the captions, signature, tables, or attorney information. Any pages in excess of these limits will be stricken if leave of court was not obtained prior to filing. [carter-david | page_limits_motions]

Opposition Limit

Reply Limit

JPS §6: Replies are limited to 10 pages. Any pages in excess of these limits will be stricken if leave of court was not obtained prior to filing. No supplemental brief(s) or sur-reply briefs may be filed without leave of Court. Local Rule 7-10. [carter-david | page_limits_replies]

Font & Formatting

JPS §6: All filings with the Court must be a minimum of 14-point size font and use double-spaced paragraphs. Any filings that do not comply with these requirements may be stricken if leave of court was not obtained prior to filing. Footnotes may be single-spaced, but the font size must be the same as that used in the body of the document. [carter-david | font_formatting]

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At Filing

Chambers Copies

Conditional JPS §4 Mandatory chambers copies: All original filings are to be filed electronically pursuant to Local Rule 5-4. Civil matters: motions for final approval of class settlements; ex parte applications (excluding PHV Applications) and related documents (oppositions and exhibits); Joint Rule 26(f) Reports; and all pretrial as well as ALL TRIAL DOCUMENTS. To save paper, no courtesy copies should be filed for motions not listed above. Mandatory chambers copies of all documents shall be delivered to the mandatory chambers box (10th floor) no later than noon following the date of filing. MANDATORY CHAMBERS COPIES DO NOT NEED TO BE BLUE-BACKED. [carter-david | chambers_copies_details]

Proposed Orders

JPS §8 Proposed Orders: Please refer to L.R. 5-4.4.1 (requiring electronic filing of proposed orders in PDF format) and L.R. 5-4.4.2 (requiring email submission of proposed orders in Word-processing formats). For email submissions of proposed orders, the Court prefers that proposed orders be submitted in Word format only. Email submissions of proposed orders should be sent to DOC_Chambers@cacd.uscourts.gov. Please note the Court does not have the capability to process proposed orders via CD or disk. [carter-david | proposed_orders]

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Before the Hearing

Oral Argument

Silent on oral argument default. [carter-david | oral_argument_default]

Remote Appearances

JPS Important Notice: All proceedings- including trials, motion hearings, scheduling conferences, and status conferences- will be held IN PERSON in Courtroom 10A. Any request for a remote appearance must be e-filed promptly with a declaration showing good cause. Requests for remote appearance are rarely granted. §I Civil SO: The parties must appear in person for hearings and conferences before the Court. The Court does not permit telephonic appearances. [carter-david | remote_appearances]

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Background Rules

Chambers Contact

§IX. Communication with the Court. All appropriate inquiries should be directed to Judge Carter's Courtroom Deputy Clerk at (714) 338-4543 or DOC_Chambers@cacd.uscourts.gov. Counsel should not attempt to contact chambers directly. Counsel should list their email addresses and phone numbers on their papers in order to facilitate communication by the Courtroom Deputy Clerk. [carter-david | chambers_contact_restrictions]

Discovery Referral

JPS §2 Discovery motions in a civil case: All discovery motions are to be calendared before the assigned Magistrate Judge. Parties and counsel are directed to the procedures for discovery motions in Local Rule 37 and are advised to consult the procedures page of the Magistrate Judge assigned to their case. [carter-david | discovery_referral]

Discovery Motion Process

Scheduling §IV(3). Discovery Motions: Any motion regarding the inadequacy of responses to discovery must be filed and served no later than five (5) days after the discovery cut-off date. Routine discovery motions will be referred to the magistrate judge assigned to the case. Whenever possible, the Court expects counsel to resolve discovery disputes among themselves in a courteous, reasonable, and professional manner. Repeated resort to the Court for guidance in discovery is unnecessary and may result in the Court appointing a Special Master at the joint expense of the parties to resolve discovery disputes. [carter-david | discovery_motion_process]

Ex Parte Applications

§V. Ex Parte Applications. Ex parte applications that fail to conform to Local Rule 7-19 and 7-19.1, including a statement of opposing counsel's position, will not be considered except on a specific showing of good cause. Concurrently with service of the ex parte papers by electronic service, facsimile, or personal service, the moving party shall notify the opposition that opposing papers must be filed no later than twenty-four (24) hours following service. If opposing counsel does not intend to oppose the ex parte application, counsel must inform the Courtroom Deputy Clerk by telephone or email as soon as possible. [carter-david | ex_parte_notice]

Settlement Notification

§VIII. Settlement. If settlement is reached at any time in this litigation, the parties shall immediately notify the Court by telephone, email, or by filing a notice of settlement. Local Rule 40-2. [carter-david | settlement_notification]

Lead Counsel

§I. Court Appearances. Unless a party is representing him or herself, parties shall be represented by lead counsel at all court appearances, including scheduling conferences. Under no circumstances should counsel, or a party if the party is appearing pro se, fail to appear at a court appearance unless their appearance has been waived by prior order of the Court. JPS §9: In civil cases, lead trial counsel is expected to appear at all conferences and hearings, including motion hearings. Special appearances are not permitted, and only counsel of record may appear. [carter-david | lead_counsel_requirement]

Under Seal Filings

§VII. Applications to File Documents Under Seal. There is a strong presumption that the public has a right of access to records in civil cases. For non-dispositive motions, the party seeking to maintain the confidentiality of the document(s) or portions thereof must show good cause. For dispositive motions, the party seeking protection must articulate compelling reasons for maintaining the confidentiality of the document(s) and must seek relief that is narrowly tailored to the protected interest. No document will be filed under seal in its entirety unless it is shown in the application that it is not feasible to file a redacted version for public viewing. [carter-david | under_seal_requirements]

Continuances & Calendar Conflicts

§III. Continuances and Extensions of Deadlines. This Court has a strong interest in adhering to scheduled dates. Changes in dates are disfavored. Trial dates set by the Court are firm and will rarely be changed, except that the Court may advance the trial date up to two weeks. Any request, whether by application or stipulation, to continue the date of any matter before this Court must be supported by a detailed explanation of the grounds for the requested continuance or extension of time. JPS §14: If counsel has a calendar conflict, counsel should seek a stipulation from all opposing counsel; if not forthcoming, file an Ex Parte Application. [carter-david | continuances_calendar_conflicts]

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AI & Style Preferences

Summary Judgment Limitations

§IV. Motions: Parties should note, the Court will only entertain one Motion for Summary Judgment from each party, typically after discovery is closed. Scheduling §VII: In general, the Court will hear only one motion for summary judgment per party. Cross motions for summary judgment will all be heard on the same day, after the close of discovery. The Court will not entertain piecemeal motions for partial summary judgment before the factual record is complete.

Sources & Currency

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